Unmet Need
Every year millions of people are diagnosed with a variety of severe oral/bone diseases including periodontitis, large bone defects, and alveolar bone degradation. These diseases often result in the loss of bone cells in affected areas which can lead to several other complications such as osteoporosis and tooth loss. Such complications impede patients’ quality of life and well-being, making it crucial to find a material that can efficiently regenerate bone density. However, bone regeneration is an extremely complex physiological process that requires various biological materials and environmental conditions. As a consequence, it is difficult to find a scaffold or synthetic material that is biologically stable and biocompatible when used in vivo.
Technology Overview
Due to their chemical similarity to human bones and teeth, calcium phosphate materials have received a great deal of research and funding in recent years. Calcium phosphate materials are nontoxic and have shown exceptional biocompatibility. It is an inexpensive material with considerable reliability when used in vivo, reducing inspection and maintenance required during application. The technology proposed utilizes a new method of generating calcium phosphate materials using a piezoelectric matrix. The process generates a novel self-adaptable regenerative calcium phosphate material, increasing the material’s performance and operational flexibility. In addition, this method does not use biological processes to form the material, and thus can be used in a wide variety of environments. Such an optimal and adjustable mechanism offers a new form of bone regeneration that demonstrates a significant improvement over existing methods which will improve patient outcomes.
Stage of Development
Numerous in vivo and in vitro studies have been conducted
Publications
S. Orrego, et al. “Bioinspired Materials with Self-Adaptable Mechanical Properties.” Adv. Mater. 2020, 32, 1906970.
