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Review
. 2017 May 31;10(6):602.
doi: 10.3390/ma10060602.

Chitosan Biomaterials for Current and Potential Dental Applications

Shehriar Husain  1 , Khalid H Al-Samadani  2 , Shariq Najeeb  3 , Muhammad S Zafar  4   5 , Zohaib Khurshid  6 , Sana Zohaib  7 , Saad B Qasim  8
Affiliations
Review

Chitosan Biomaterials for Current and Potential Dental Applications

Shehriar Husain et al. Materials (Basel). .

Abstract

Chitosan (CHS) is a very versatile natural biomaterial that has been explored for a range of bio-dental applications. CHS has numerous favourable properties such as biocompatibility, hydrophilicity, biodegradability, and a broad antibacterial spectrum (covering gram-negative and gram-positive bacteria as well as fungi). In addition, the molecular structure boasts reactive functional groups that provide numerous reaction sites and opportunities for forging electrochemical relationships at the cellular and molecular levels. The unique properties of CHS have attracted materials scientists around the globe to explore it for bio-dental applications. This review aims to highlight and discuss the hype around the development of novel chitosan biomaterials. Utilizing chitosan as a critical additive for the modification and improvement of existing dental materials has also been discussed.

Keywords: biopolymers; chitin; dental materials; dental restorations; natural biomaterials; tissue regeneration.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Schematic presentation of deacetylation of chitin derived from crustacean exoskeletons.
Figure 2
Figure 2
The comparison of chemical structural units: (A) chitin; and (B) chitosan formed following the process of deacetylation [16].
Figure 3
Figure 3
Various structures of modified chitosan in combination with other compounds. (A) quaternized chitosan (N,N,N trimethyl chitosan); (B) water-soluble polyethylene-glycol conjugated chitosan; (C) glycol chitosan containing short ethylene glycol groups [46]; (D) water-soluble and cross-linkable chitosan derivative obtained by grafting methacrylic acid and lactic acid onto the pendant amine groups of chitosan [47]; (E) quaternized chitosan modified using glycidyl trimethyl ammonium chloride (GTMAC) for protein delivery [48].
Figure 4
Figure 4
Current and potential applications of chitosan materials in dentistry.
Figure 5
Figure 5
The schematic presentation of bone regeneration using the guided bone regeneration (GBR) approach. (A) shows the barrier preventing the contact of “the dentogingival epithelium and gingival connective tissues” with the curetted root surface; (B) shows the Gore-Tex augmentation membrane in a closed (primary soft tissue coverage) supporting new connective tissue regeneration and attachment on a previously periodontaly involved root surface (adapted from Scantlebury and Abmbruster [98] with the permission from publisher). GTR: guided tissue regeneration
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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