Biomaterials in Tooth Tissue Engineering

Abstract

Tooth tissue engineering through advancements in cell biology and bioengineering has proceeded toward regeneration of entire tooth or individual and surrounding components of tooth. Tooth regenerative therapy is a novel therapeutic concept directing toward restoration of physiological function of tooth such as mastication, periodontal ligament function, and response to noxious stimuli. Tooth regeneration is achieved through two distinctive approaches such as cell transplantation and cell homing. Cell-based strategies are a promising potential for regenerating the whole tooth structure in rodents but rendering obstacles in therapeutics. Cell homing is an under-recognized alternative approach to cell delivery-based tooth regeneration. This approach provides tangible pathway toward clinical translation. Scaffold-based or scaffold-free tissue engineering is considered for tooth regeneration. Scaffold-based approach uses scaffolds planted with cells either in vitro or by cell homing. Scaffold-free approach directly induces development of embryonic tooth formation by appropriate signals to produce tooth structure which mimics natural teeth in morphology and size. The combination of biomaterials and human tooth‐associated with stem cell populations isolated from dental pulp and periodontal ligament tissues shows promising approach to regenerate human dental tissues. Scaffolds provide biophysical support for cell recruitment, adhesion, proliferation, differentiation, and metabolism. The designed scaffolds should be biocompatible, non-toxic, and promote regeneration of single or multiple dental tissues. Different types of biomaterials for constructing scaffolds are available that can regenerate tooth components which successfully improves the treatment outcome.