title: Nanosized Building Blocks for Customizing Novel Antibiofilm Approaches.
abstract: Recent advances in nanotechnology provide unparalleled flexibility to control the composition, size, shape, surface chemistry, and functionality of materials. Currently available engineering approaches allow precise synthesis of nanocompounds (e.g., nanoparticles, nanostructures, nanocrystals) with both top-down and bottom-up design principles at the submicron level. In this context, these "nanoelements" (NEs) or "nanosized building blocks" can 1) generate new nanocomposites with antibiofilm properties or 2) be used to coat existing surfaces (e.g., teeth) and exogenously introduced surfaces (e.g., restorative or implant materials) for prevention of bacterial adhesion and biofilm formation. Furthermore, functionalized NEs 3) can be conceived as nanoparticles to carry and selectively release antimicrobial agents after attachment or within oral biofilms, resulting in their disruption. The latter mechanism includes "smart release" of agents when triggered by pathogenic microenvironments (e.g., acidic pH or low oxygen levels) for localized and controlled drug delivery to simultaneously kill bacteria and dismantle the biofilm matrix. Here we discuss inorganic, metallic, polymeric, and carbon-based NEs for their outstanding chemical flexibility, stability, and antibiofilm properties manifested when converted into bioactive materials, assembled on-site or delivered at biofilm-surface interfaces. Details are provided on the emerging concept of the rational design of NEs and recent technological breakthroughs for the development of a new generation of nanocoatings or functional nanoparticles for biofilm control in the oral cavity.
authors.affiliation: 1 Solid-Biological Interface Group (SolBIN), Departamento de Física, Universidade Federal do Ceará, Fortaleza, Brazil.
authors.forename: A J
authors.initials: AJ
authors.lastname: Paula
authors.affiliation: 2 Divisions of Pediatric Dentistry and Community Oral Health, Department of Orthodontics, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA.
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Koo
mesh_terms: D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use; D001422:Bacterial Adhesion / Q000187:drug effects; D018441:Biofilms / Q000187:drug effects*; D003764:Dental Materials / Q000627:therapeutic use; D006801:Humans; D053761:Nanocomposites / Q000627:therapeutic use; D049329:Nanostructures / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D013499:Surface Properties
chemical_list: D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents; D003764:Dental Materials
keywords: dental caries; dental materials; dental plaque; infection control; nanoparticles; periodontal diseases