NOMAD: Novel biomaterials to prevent dental peri-implant infections
BRAEM A. 1, KÜBRA AKTAN M. 1, VLEUGELS J. 1, VAN MEERBEEK B. 1, TEUGHELS W. 1, THEVISSEN K. 1, FRANÇOIS I. 7, GREMILLARD L. 8, CHEVOLOT Y. 9, LAURENCEAU E. 9, SANZ M. 10, BARLIC A. 11, RODRIGUEZ N. 3, VAN DER MEI H. 12, COURTOIS N. 4, HANRAHAN J. 5, COURTNEY M. 5, KEAVENEY S. 6, KILLIAN M. 2
1 KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium; 2 Universität Siegen, Siegen, Germany; 3 Atrineo AG, Karlsruhe, Germany; 4 Anthogyr SAS, Sallanches, France; 5 Glantreo Ltd, Cork, Ireland; 6 Croom Precision Tooling Ltd, Limerick, Ireland; 7 Health House, Leuven, Belgium; 8 Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique Lyon, Lyon, France; 9 Ecole Centrale de Lyon, Lyon, France; 10 Universidad Complutense de Madrid, Madrid, Spain; 11 Educell d.o.o., Ljubljana, Slovenia; 12 University Medical Center Groningen, Groningen, Netherlands
Peri-implant infections are a devastating complication of dental implants, occurring in approximately 20% of all patients, that can ultimately lead to implant instability and loss. Considering this high prevalence rate and the lack of predictive treatments in severe cases, prevention of peri-implantitis has become a major challenge in clinical dentistry.
The EU-funded NOMAD project will develop innovative biomaterial approaches for dental implants, from Technology Readiness Level (TRL) 3 up to TRL5. The developed functionalised implant coatings for titanium and zirconia implant surfaces will reduce the risk of infection and associated inflammation, improve soft-tissue sealing at the gum line, and promote osseointegration. A further innovation will be multi-material crowns and abutments using additive manufacturing combined with the grafting of nanotubes. This will enable controlled release of prebiotic as well as antimicrobial compounds in response to bacterial adhesion at the onset of infection (i.e. smart conditional release). A combination of the developed functionalised implant coatings and smart conditional release approaches will be employed in the final product to provide a customisable, all-round solution which focuses on crown, abutment, and/or fixture for the prevention of peri-implantitis. Advanced in vitro testing using complex cell co-cultures in bioreactor systems, and biomechanical stability tests will enable the selection of the most promising biomaterials for testing in relevant in vivo models. These results will enable rapid progression to the first-in-human studies of new biomaterials after the project. A cost-benefit analysis and a regulatory assessment will be performed and an innovation management strategy will develop a roadmap for commercialisation.
The NOMAD consortium includes a major dental implant manufacturer, academic groups, SMEs working on biomaterials innovations, and a specialist innovation company. The project is a major opportunity for enhancing EU competitiveness in biomaterials and inter-sector technology transfer.
