Nanoparticle‐Based Targeting and Detection of Microcavities

Although dental caries is the most prevalent oral disease worldwide, currently, many dentists continue to use the traditional mirror and probe (dental explorer) method of caries diagnosis. This method of caries detection has the drawback that it is often difficult to distinguish between active and inactive carious lesions. In this work, novel bio-based nanoparticles are developed to specifically detect active caries in vitro. The nanoparticles are made from a cationic fluorescein-labeled food-grade starch in order to fluoresce when illuminated by a standard dental curing light, and to degrade in the oral cavity into nontoxic compounds after detecting the active carious lesion. When exposed to extracted human teeth, cationic fluorescent (+5.8 ± 1.2 mV) nanoparticles (size 101 ± 56 nm) selectively illuminate active caries, but not the healthy tooth surface. Two-photon microscopy confirms the selective binding and accumulation of cationic fluorescent nanoparticles into microscopic carious pores in enamel. These novel nanoparticles provide a unique method to assist in the early diagnosis of active carious lesions with the potential to directly impact dental treatment.