Injectable hydrogels functionalized with polyphenols for pulp-dentin regeneration

• Grant number: 23/17129-8
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Master
• Start date: May 01, 2024
• End date: April 30, 2026
• Field of knowledge: Health Sciences - Dentistry - Dental Materials
• Principal Investigator: Diana Gabriela Soares dos Passos
• Grantee: Marcella Fernandes Lovison
• Host Institution: Faculdade de Odontologia de Bauru (FOB). Universidade de São Paulo (USP). Bauru , SP, Brazil

Abstract

Currently, new treatment modalities are being sought to stimulate the regeneration of the dentin-pulp complex within a minimally invasive context by applying materials that adapt perfectly to the defect and stimulate resident pulp and apical papilla cells to migrate into the material and differentiate, resulting in the deposition of new tissue, which is called cell homing therapy. Therefore, the present research project aims to develop three-dimensional injectable scaffolds with an ordered macroporous structure, associated with polyphenols as bioactive cell signaling molecules, to stimulate dentin and pulp regeneration. Initially, the bioactive and pro-angiogenic concentrations of polyphenols (proanthocyanidin, tannic acid, and resveratrol) on pulp cells (DPCs), apical papilla cells (SCAPs), and endothelial cells (HUVECs) will be determined (Phase 1). Injectable and photoactivated hydrogels based on gelatin methacrylate (GelMA) will then be formulated to select the tissue-specific concentration that promotes extracellular matrix deposition and angiogenesis (Phase 2). In Phases 3 and 4, hydrogels functionalized with polyphenols, at the concentrations determined in the previous phases, will be formulated, aiming at dentin and pulp regeneration, respectively. In the end, qualitative data will be descriptively analyzed, and quantitative data will undergo specific statistical analysis.