Review of nanomaterials in dentistry: interactions with the oral microenvironment, clinical applications, hazards, and benefits.

Interest in the use of engineered nanomaterials (ENMs) as either nanomedicines or dental materials/devices in clinical dentistry is growing. This review aims to detail the ultrafine structure, chemical composition, and reactivity of dental tissues in the context of interactions with ENMs, including the saliva, pellicle layer, and oral biofilm; then describes the applications of ENMs in dentistry in context with beneficial clinical outcomes versus potential risks. The flow rate and quality of saliva are likely to influence the behavior of ENMs in the oral cavity, but how the protein corona formed on the ENMs will alter bioavailability, or interact with the structure and proteins of the pellicle layer, as well as microbes in the biofilm, remains unclear. The tooth enamel is a dense crystalline structure that is likely to act as a barrier to ENM penetration, but underlying dentinal tubules are not. Consequently, ENMs may be used to strengthen dentine or regenerate pulp tissue. ENMs have dental applications as antibacterials for infection control, as nanofillers to improve the mechanical and bioactive properties of restoration materials, and as novel coatings on dental implants. Dentifrices and some related personal care products are already available for oral health applications. Overall, the clinical benefits generally outweigh the hazards of using ENMs in the oral cavity, and the latter should not prevent the responsible innovation of nanotechnology in dentistry. However, the clinical safety regulations for dental materials have not been specifically updated for ENMs, and some guidance on occupational health for practitioners is also needed. Knowledge gaps for future research include the formation of protein corona in the oral cavity, ENM diffusion through clinically relevant biofilms, and mechanistic investigations on how ENMs strengthen the tooth structure

Effect of Phosphate Salts (Na3PO4, Na2HPO4, and NaH2PO4) on Ag3PO4 Morphology for Photocatalytic Dye Degradation under Visible Light and Toxicity of the Degraded Dye Products

Ag3PO4 was synthesized by the precipitation method using three different types of phosphate salts (Na3PO4, Na2HPO4, and NaH2PO4) as a precipitating agent. Hydrolysis of each phosphate salt gave a specific pH that affected the purity and morphology of the prepared Ag3PO4. The Ag3PO4 prepared from Na2HPO4 showed the best photocatalytic activity induced by visible light to degrade methylene blue dye. During the photocatalytic process, Ag3PO4 decomposed and produced metallic Ag, and this evidence was confirmed by the X-ray diffraction technique and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. The photocatalytic efficiency decreased with the number of recycles used. This Ag3PO4 photocatalyst also degraded another cationic dye, rhodamine B, but did not degrade reactive orange, an anionic dye. The degraded products produced by the photocatalysis had lower toxicities than the untreated dyes using Chlorella vulgaris as a bioindicato

Photocatalytic degradation of dye by Ag/ZnO prepared by reduction of Tollen’s reagent and the ecotoxicity of degraded products

A heterostructure of Ag/ZnO powder was prepared by a reduction of Ag(NH3) 2 + ions in a basic solution or Tollen’s reagent. From this method, the existence of a metallic Ag coating on the ZnO surface was confirmed by transmission electron microscope and x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. The photocatalytic activity of the Ag/ZnO powders was investigated by analyzing the degradation of an aqueous methylene blue solution under a blacklight irradiation. Furthermore, the parameters, including Ag content, catalyst loading, initial dye concentration and pH, were also studied. After the methylene blue solution was irradiated for 30min under a blacklight illumination, total mineralization was not observed as the presence of some carbon compound species was indicated in a mass spectrum. Furthermore, the toxicity of the treated methylene blue solution produced by the Ag/ZnO powders was also investigated by a test for the inhibition of the growth of Chlorella vulgaris