Developed: New glass particles that sequentially release ions to suppress pulp inflammation and promote dentin formation

Hirohiko SAKAI,Jun-Ichi SASAKI, Satoshi IMAZATO
Joint Research Laboratory of Advanced Functional Materials Science

A research group at the University of Osaka has developed novel glass particles designed for vital pulp preservation therapy that sequentially release lithium and strontium ions.

When dental caries (tooth decay) progresses deeply and reaches the dental pulp—the living tissue inside the tooth—it causes painful inflammation. In conventional dentistry, such affected pulp is often surgically removed.

To address this, they designed the new glass particles to first rapidly release lithium ions to suppress pulp inflammation. Subsequently, the particles slowly release strontium ions, actively promoting the formation of reparative dentin over the pulp.

In cell culture (in vitro) experiments, the application of this glass successfully restored the function of inflamed dental pulp cells. Furthermore, animal (in vivo) experiments using rat teeth demonstrated that the glass suppressed pulp inflammation and accelerated the formation of reparative dentin. Applying this innovative glass technology is expected to lead to the development of next-generation dental materials that protect and preserve inflamed dental pulp without requiring its removal.

These research findings were published in the May 2026 issue of the American scientific journal Dental Materials under the title, “Synthesis and characterization of lithium- and strontium-releasing smart bioactive glasses for direct pulp capping application” (DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.dental.2026.01.005).