A smile in the mirror test and tooth decay.

It is what it promises chemistry combined with the 3D printing of teeth and dentures, which is increasingly becoming a reality thanks to digital scanning of the oral cavity and innovative increasingly efficient and safe materials.
It is in this scenario that is working Andreas Herrmann of the University of Groningen (Netherlands) which together with other colleagues developed an antimicrobial plastic material that can be printed in 3D.
The study has integrated quaternary ammonium salts, highly effective against a wide variety of microorganisms, germs and bacteria, in a resin polymers.
This "mix" has been used with existing dental resins to create, thanks to 3D printing, spare teeth resistant to attack by these enemies of smile.
"The material - he told New Scientist Herrmann, author of the research - can kill bacteria on contact and is not harmful to the body."
To test the anti-microbial properties of this new generation of synthetic teeth properties, the researchers coated samples of an organic material formed from saliva and Streptococcus mutans, the bacterium that causes tooth decay.
Well, the material has killed more than 99% of bacteria, compared to less than 1% of a control sample free of ammonium salts.
"To go to a next step we have to work on other tests and compatibility with toothpaste," concluded Herrmann.

From Focus