Biomedical Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
typically less than 10 wt%. Obviously, taxes and marketing margins are a few of the components
that impact the final price for the consumer, and the packaging represents more than one-third of
the final price without any gain of economy of scale. The average cost of fabrication of functional
nanoparticles is usually in the range from $100 to $1000 per gram, but its impact in the price
composition of dentistry products is proportional to the parcel of others components, resulting in a
product with commercial viability considering their advantages regarding the performance and
patient comfort.
9.4.3
Potential use in dental field and future directions
In general, the great interest of nanoparticles is related to its highly small size. By reducing the size
of a material, the surface to volume ratio increases. As a consequence, the majority of the atoms
are at the margin of the particle making them much more reactive
[60]
. This reactivity is specially
noted in inorganic nanoparticles and might conduce to instabilities and then to degradation and
corrosion processes
[60]
. Regarding silver nanoparticles, several methods of synthesis have been
developed in the last decade, although most of them are still under development
[61]
. They are
basically focused on increasing the stability and reducing the aggregation of nanoparticles since the
small size would ensure that an expressive surface area would be in contact with the microbial
effluent
[62,63]
. However, we agree with Pal et al.
[62]
when they said that “smallness in itself ”
should not be the only purpose in the development of functional inorganic nanoparticles. The
majority of our studies related to the action of silver nanoparticles against Candida species testified it,
especially the study carried out by Monteiro et al.
[19]
where the size of the particles did not interfere
with its efficacy. Surface interactions of nanoparticles with the surrounding medium (bioactivity)
before they reach the aimed target are a significant aspect to be considered
[64]
.Bast´setal.
[60]
clearly explained that in functional colloidal inorganic nanoparticles, these interactions are deter-
mined not only by the size, shape, or structure of the center (core) of the nanoparticle but also by
the organic or inorganic molecules that cover the core (shell)
[60]
. This might be the most relevant
insight that those authors specially pointed out about nanostructured materials, and their applicability
in biomedical/dental field relies on more understanding and comprehension about not only con-
trolled synthesis but also particles interfacial interactions and their toxicity
[65,66]
.
Besides the predominant role of the shell on the interactions of the nanoparticle, it may also
protect the particle and, therefore, defines its selectivity against the microorganism or the molecular
target
[60]
. We could take advantage of this particular bioactivity of functional nanoparticles and
intentionally engineer them for both core and shell to provide therapeutic effects with low toxicity
on the mammalian cells.
9.5
Conclusions
Concluding, the field of dentistry should be encouraged by the multiple studies in nanotechnology
that have been widely published in different fields like medical, chemical, biological engineering,
and at least environmental field to create “intelligent bionanomaterials” which could act multifunc-
tionally: (i) by preventing/controlling the infection in or on oral tissues as well as (ii) by
stimulating/contributing for the RE of dental and bone tissues. Very recent literature has been
