Tissue engineering and its application in periodontics

Abstract

Tissue engineering is an emerging field of science, developing techniques for the fabrication of new tissues for replacement based on principles of cell and developmental biology and biomaterials. It is a relatively new field of regenerative medicine which utilizes mechanical, cellular, or biologic mediators to facilitate reconstruction/regeneration of a particular tissue. The objective of using tissue engineering as a therapeutic application has been to harness its ability to exploit selected and primed cells together with an appropriate mix of regulatory factors, to allow the growth and specialization of cells and matrix. In periodontology, the concept of tissue engineering had its beginnings with guided tissue regeneration, a mechanical approach utilizing non-resorbable membranes to obtain regeneration in defects. In dental implantology, guided bone regeneration membranes are used for bone augmentation of proposed implant-placement sites. With the availability of partially purified protein mixture from developing teeth and growth factors from recombinant technology, a new era of tissue engineering has emerged whereby biologic mediators can be used for periodontal regeneration. This article reviews various aspects of tissue engineering for periodontal tissue regeneration which may act as a promising tool for the restoration of damaged periodontal tissues.