A crucial part of the body’s acceptance of a new dental implant is the growth of bone on the titanium surface of the implant itself. That is, when a dental implant is surgically inserted, the healing process that takes place afterwards “fuses” the bone to the titanium pin, which keeps the pin from becoming loose or otherwise leading to implant failure.

Dentists and scientists have developed a number of approaches to improve the regenerative capacity of the bone adjacent to the implant. One strategy is to create surface conditions on the titanium implant itself which speed up bone growth, such a creating “roughness” on the sides of the implant using acid etching and sandblasting.

An alternative method that scientists are currently exploring involves using biological signals to attract bone cells to the surface of the implant using short sequences of amino acids. Another approach being considered is using “signalling molecules” (sometimes called “growth factors”) to accelerate cellular specialization, which has the potential to considerably increase the amount and strength of bone growth.

• Read more at Chemical Science