Dental hypersensitivity is the result of movement of fluid inside dental tubules, small canals inside the dentine layer. Our research aims at the development of new tooth pastes and other dentifrices that will help tubule occlusion. Approaches explored are layer by layer (LBL) deposition, cross-linking, and functionalized nanoparticles. In LBL, positively and negatively charged materials are applied in alternating sequences to tooth samples. Currently, we focus on alginate, chondroitin, and chitosan - biocompatible molecules that are known to cross-link with calcium ions and polyanions respectively, or electrostatically interact with one another. Partial occlusion is observed under both mild washing conditions as well as a sonication challenge. Diffusion of calcium ions through the gels formed by the abovementioned materials leads to remineralization of a tooth surface <i>in vitro</i>. Observing depth of tubule occlusion via focused ion beam (FIB) and conducting clinical trials are our goals for the future work.

Potential of nontoxic materials to treat dentinal hypersensitivity and promote tooth remineralization

253rd National Meeting (2017)

The official archive and repository for all ACS Meetings & Expositions abstracts and select posters or presentations.