Dental trauma and caries are the two most common reasons for decreased Oral Health Related
Quality of Life. Dental pulp is the innermost layer of a tooth made up of living tissue. It is
responsible for root strength, root growth and innervation in immature permanent teeth. In case
of pulp infection due to dental caries or trauma, the infected pulp is removed and pulp therapy is
carried out with dental cements. This treatment is highly challenging due to immature and thin
roots characteristic of young age.
State of the art dental cements used for pulp therapy have two major limitations - inadequate
antibacterial activity and inability to stimulate pulp regeneration. Current pulp therapy approaches
aim at replacement instead of regeneration. The treated teeth are retained but not completely
functional. This research proposal aims to solve both the above limitations by developing a smart
antibacterial dental cement with the ability to regenerate dental pulp. Upon application, the
developed cement would immediately release signaling molecules to achieve complete functional
healing (regeneration). On the other hand, anti-bacterial agents in the cement would be released
only in the presence of pathogenic bacteria leading to disinfection and prevention of recurrent
infection. The cement is termed 'smart' due to its ability to respond to bacterial stimulus. With
minor modifications, the developed cement could also have applications in other medical fields
such as orthopedics.