Scientific Reports (Aug 2017)

Bio-implant as a novel restoration for tooth loss

  • Dong-Joon Lee,
  • Jong-Min Lee,
  • Eun-Jung Kim,
  • Takashi Takata,
  • Yoshihiro Abiko,
  • Teruo Okano,
  • David W. Green,
  • Masaki Shimono,
  • Han-Sung Jung

DOI
https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-017-07819-z
Journal volume & issue
Vol. 7, no. 1
pp. 1 – 10

Abstract

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Abstract A dental implant is used to replace a missing tooth. Fixing the implant in its natural position requires the engineering of a substantial amount of conformal bone growth inside the implant socket, osseointegration. However, this conventional implant attachment does not include the periodontal ligament (PDL), which has a fundamental role in cushioning high mechanical loads. As a result, tooth implants have a shorter lifetime than the natural tooth and have a high chance of infections. We have engineered a “bio-implant” that provides a living PDL connection for titanium implants. The bio-implant consists of a hydroxyapatite coated titanium screw, ensheathed in cell sheets made from immortalized human periodontal cells. Bio-implants were transplanted into the upper first molar region of a tooth-extraction mouse model. Within 8 weeks the bio-implant generated fibrous connective tissue, a localised blood vessel network and new bone growth fused into the alveolar bone socket. The study presents a bio-implant engineered with human cells, specialised for the root connection, and resulted in the partial reconstruction of a naturalised tooth attachment complex (periodontium), consisting of all the principal tissue types, cementum, PDL and alveolar bone.