Baylor College of Dentistry
A new way to regenerate bone
Injectable biomaterials may be on the horizon
by Jennifer Eure Fuentes
Patients in need of dental implants often face a shared dilemma:
lack of sufficient bone to support their implants. Current options
to regenerate bone range from the invasive — using surgery to
graft bone from other parts of the body — to minimally invasive,
through the use of hydrogels.
The work of Texas A&M University Baylor College of Dentistry
researcher Dr. Xiaohua Liu could expand options for patients
with a new type of injectable biomaterial that initiates bone
regeneration. While the end goal is essentially the same as current minimally invasive methods, the material and the process
are strikingly different. Compared with commercial hydrogels,
which often utilize animal-derived proteins, preliminary test
results indicate that the synthetic material Liu is developing may
be more effective at filling irregularities and defects in craniofacial bone.
An article published in Advanced Healthcare Materials in
October details the mechanism: A nanofibrous porous scaffolding — picture a tiny sphere — houses proteins that initiate bone
regeneration from a patient’s own cells. Trapped within the
nanosphere is a growth factor known as BMP2, or bone morphogenetic protein. This is released in specific amounts at controlled
intervals to help bone tissue differentiate. As a cell inside the once
porous sphere grows, the nanofibrous scaffolding slowly disintegrates, and a new bone cell is born.
“We want to use bioengineering to mimic the natural tissues. This
is entirely synthetic, but it promotes growth from within your
own body,” says Liu, who explains another advantage to the
material. “When using materials from animals, we still have some
concern about the immune response. Using synthetic materials,
you don’t have that concern. The immune response will be different.”
A two-year, $210,000 grant from the National Institutes of
Health - National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research
in 2013 gave Liu the resources he needed to develop this new
injectable system using the nanofibrous microsphere. With a
one-year extension until June 2016, the success of subsequent
testing means the injectable material could soon proceed to clinical trials. One intended end result: use in a nonsurgical version
of a maxillary sinus lift, which increases the amount of bone in
the upper jaw prior to placing dental implants.
Liu’s research is part of a larger trend.
Dr. Thomas Diekwisch, director of the college’s Center for
Craniofacial Research and Diagnosis and chair of the Department
of Periodontics, says studies such as this one are on the rise.
“Biological scaffold design has been an area of exponential
growth during the recent decade,” says Diekwisch. “TAMBCD is
fortunate to have experts in this field of the caliber of Dr. Xiaohua
Liu, who are able to apply this technology toward craniofacial
applications.”
LauraLee Hughes, executive director in the Office of Technology
Translation at Texas A&M Health Science Center, has worked
with Liu on commercial development for another product, a
novel bioadhesive patch designed to treat canker sores. She offers
one explanation for the shift toward technologies that rely on the
body to regenerate tissues.
“Scaffold technologies, such as what has been developed by
Dr. Liu to promote regeneration of a patient’s own cells, offer the
promise of being able to more fully restore the biological function
of a particular tissue or bone,” says Hughes. “The potential for
this type of technology is huge. If the science around these types
of technologies can be advanced to demonstrate safety and reproducibility in humans, it could broadly be applied to regenerative
strategies for other types of tissues and biological materials.”
Founded in 1905, Texas A&M University Baylor College of Dentistry in Dallas is a
college of the Texas A&M Health Science Center. TAMBCD is a nationally recognized center for oral health sciences education, research, specialized patient care
and continuing dental education.
Jennifer Eure Fuentes is a communications specialist at Texas A&M Health Science
Center Baylor College of Dentistry. A 2006 graduate of Texas Christian University,
she has worked in the communications and editorial field for five years.
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