Innovative new dental material can resist plaque and kill microbes

Researchers have developed a new dental material that features an enhanced ability to resist plaque and kill off microbes.

Created by the University of Pennsylvania with support from Dentsply Sirona, the material is tethered with an antimicrobial compound that is not only able to kill bacteria, but can also resist the growth of biofilms such as plaque.

This means it is able to prevent the development of tooth decay, while causing minimal toxicity to the surrounding tissue, due to the fact it contains a low antimicrobial dose that kills only the bacteria that come into contact with it directly.

In a test, the material was shown to be effective in killing bacterial cells on contact, severely disrupting the growth of biofilms, while the accumulation of biofilm matrix – the glue that holds clusters of bacteria together – was minimal.

Geelsu Hwang, research assistant professor at the University of Pennsylvania school of dental medicine, said: "Many products need large amounts of antimicrobial agents to maximise killing efficacy, which can weaken the mechanical properties and be toxic to tissues, but we showed that this material has outstanding mechanical properties and long-lasting antibiofilm activities without cytotoxicity."

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