Growing Enamel Breakthrough, Alternative to SDF could be ZTD
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- Published: Monday, 10 November 2025 10:30
- Written by Peter Ingle
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Two dental research stories have emerged recently, with one getting a great deal more popular attention than the other. One sounds revolutionary, and the other takes a more evolutionary approach. Time will tell which has the greater impact on oral health.
While restoratives increasingly seek to mimic dental hard tissues the prospect of being able to ‘grow’ new enamel remains a tantalising alternative. The recent press reports that this may now be possible are based upon work done at the University of Nottingham’s School of Pharmacy and Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, in collaboration with an international team of researchers.
Before readers cancel their order for the latest composite it may be worth the briefest of glances at the paper that the press reports are based upon: “Our mineralising technology offers a practical and clinically friendly solution to remineralise thin (up to ~ 10 μm) layers of lost enamel in a manner that regains both structure and function of healthy enamel tissue.”
While this capability far surpasses current commercial dental remineralisation alternatives, it remains in vitro study. It does though show, “a capacity to grow enamel-like structures under conditions that closely imitate various mechanical and chemical challenges found in the mouth.” The researchers accept that the work, “does not fully recreate the complexity of the in vivo oral environment and, consequently, to fully confirm the capacity to regenerate natural enamel would require in vivo validation, which we envision to pursue in future work.”
Meanwhile there are developments in dealing with caries, as a promising alternative to silver diamine fluoride has been developed at New York University. SDF has FDA approval to treat tooth sensitivity and its use for preventing and arresting caries has been well reported. However its ease of application and low cost come with the major disadvantage that it permanently blackens treated surfaces.
Professor of Chemistry at NYU, Marc Walters, wondered if there was an alternative to silver that was antimicrobial and colourless. Zinc compounds have a long history in dental use, and drawing inspiration from silver diamine fluoride, Walters developed another zinc-based molecule called zinc tetramine difluoride.
This forms a colourless zinc oxide deep inside dentine tubules. The agent starts out as a liquid that is sensitive to concentration and pH. When painted onto a tooth and absorbed, the conditions within dentine tubules prompt a chemical change that quickly turns it into a solid, blocking the tubules and slowly releasing the antimicrobial zinc into the tooth.
Professor Walters’ team is continuing to develop related compounds for the treatment of cavities and has already applied for patents of these zinc-based materials in several countries.
With both fact-acting and long-lasting properties the new material offers an ideal combination for both caries prevention and tooth sensitivity, especially since many current treatments for sensitivity need multiple applications, and can take some time to work. In contrast, in one study, two minutes after treatment with the new agent, researchers using the electron microscopy could observe the zinc forming long cylinders of mineral in the tubules.
Walters’ work caught the attention of Southern Dental Industries (SDI), the Australian dental materials company whose products include silver diamine fluoride. They have now purchased the license for the zinc technology and NYU is working with them to develop it.
The next phase of their research, will include additional studies on the compound’s formulation, effectiveness, toxicity, and shelf life. Ultimately, if these studies go well, the researchers and SDI will seek FDA permission for a clinical trial.
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