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TEKNOKONVERGENS-Teknologikonvergens - grensesprengende forskning og radikal innovasjon

Multispecies biofilm for investigate non-antibiotic therapies in dentistry (MISFAITH)

Alternative title: Multispecies biofilm for evaluering av ikke-antibiotiske teknologier i odontologi (MISFAITH)

Awarded: NOK 20.0 mill.

Antimicrobial resistance (AMR)—bacteria’s development of resistance to antibiotics, the miracle drug of the last 100 years—is a growing global threat. The culprits are many, but the result is the same: bacteria acquire strengths that overpower antibiotic treatments and render them ineffective to useless. A 2019 study attributes 141,000 deaths in high-income countries directly to bacterial AMR. Two forces are propelling the spread of AMR. One is the weakening of treatments through the evolution of pathogens, accelerated by human behaviour. The other is an absence of pharmacological innovation to respond to such novel evolution. The overall result is an innovation ecosystem that is not staying ahead of the developing danger. Here will do a difference. In the current project we will present a new model that can investigate new technologies that reduce the use of antibiotics when removing bacteria on infected implants. Our new model will reduce the use of laboratory animals

The increasing use of biomaterials and medical devices has led to the emergence of new families of diseases related precisely to the use of these new technologies. Titanium dental implants are made with rough surfaces that facilitate good bone integration, but this approach also promotes bacterial adhesion and biofilm formation, and thus, infections. Preventive measures involve surface modifications of titanium implants, regenerative materials to counteract infection-induced bone loss, and debridement of implant surfaces. It is an intricate balance to find the right combination between the implant material, cleaning methods, and regeneration of bone loss. There is a high rate of colonisation of these surfaces due to the induction of biofilm-growing microorganisms, which are progressively resistant to antimicrobial therapies. The accumulation of microbes and biofilm formation, both in teeth and dental implants, triggers an inflammatory process characterized by the destruction of tooth/implant supporting bone. Unless biofilms are appropriately controlled, they accelerate their physiological heterogeneity and a series of complex interactions follows that results in chronic inflammation and loss of adjacent tissues. The condition thus often develops into a vicious circle with a great toll on the general health of the patients. The only way to break the cycle is through rigid biofilm control. MISFAITH aims to develop a dynamic multispecies biofilm model that can be used to model and test 3 novel methods for tackling the challenges associated with biomaterial-induced infections. Success in MISFAITH will have an enormous impact on the dental biomaterials field since as it would shift current treatment procedures to regenerative outcomes, resulting in better treatments and higher patient satisfaction, and less use of antibiotics. Therefore, if successful, the project outcomes will have an enormous social impact and potential for patient welfare.

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TEKNOKONVERGENS-Teknologikonvergens - grensesprengende forskning og radikal innovasjon

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