Multifunctional magnesium organic framework-based photothermal and pH dual-responsive mouthguard for caries prevention and tooth self-healing promotion

Qun Li; Jinbiao Liu; Huijie Liu; Yue Sun; Yingying Xu; Kexin Wang; Wenjing Huang; Lan Liao; Xiaolei Wang

doi:10.1016/j.bioactmat.2023.06.017

Multifunctional magnesium organic framework-based photothermal and pH dual-responsive mouthguard for caries prevention and tooth self-healing promotion

Bioact Mater. 2023 Jun 29:29:72-84. doi: 10.1016/j.bioactmat.2023.06.017. eCollection 2023 Nov.

Authors

Qun Li^{1

2

3}, Jinbiao Liu², Huijie Liu^{1

2

3}, Yue Sun⁴, Yingying Xu^{1

2

3}, Kexin Wang², Wenjing Huang², Lan Liao^{1

5

3}, Xiaolei Wang^{2

4}

Affiliations

¹ Affiliated Stomatological Hospital, Nanchang University, Nanchang, Jiangxi, 330006, PR China.
² National Engineering Research Center for Bioengineering Drugs and the Technologies, Institute of Translational Medicine, Nanchang University, Nanchang, Jiangxi, 330088, PR China.
³ Key Laboratory of Oral Biomedicine, Nanchang, Jiangxi, 330006, PR China.
⁴ College of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Nanchang University, Nanchang, Jiangxi, 330088, PR China.
⁵ Jinggangshan University, Ji'an, Jiangxi, 343009, PR China.

Abstract

Caries is considered to be the most prevalent non-communicable disease in humans, mainly deriving from acidogenic bacterial biofilm and resulting in the demineralization and decomposition of hard dental tissue. Herein, a composite responsive foam brace loaded with magnesium organic framework (MPC) is designed for caries prevention and tooth remineralization. MPC can intelligently release organic antibacterial molecules (gallic acid) and mineralized ions (Mg²⁺, Ca²⁺ and PO₄^3-) under acidic conditions (pH < 5.5) of biofilm infection, regulating pH and killing bacteria. Additionally, due to the excellent photothermal conversion efficiency, MPC can further enhance the destruction of bacterial biofilm by inhibiting virulence genes and destroying bacterial adhesion under near-infrared light irradiation (808 nm). More importantly, MPC can not only reverse the cariogenic environment at both pH and microbial levels, but also promote self-healing of demineralized teeth in terms of both the micro-structure and mechanical properties.

Keywords: Caries prevention; Photothermy; Remineralization; pH-response.