Caries is a bacterial infection that affects the hard tissue of teeth through a chronic regressive process. The 2018 Indonesian Basic Health Data (RISKESDAS) shows that as many as 88.8% of Indonesian population experiences caries. This high prevalence rate makes caries the top 6 disease suffered by society (Ministry of Health of the Republic of Indonesia, 2022).
Starting from this concern, a collaborative exact scientific research group was formed between students from the Faculty of Dentistry and the Faculty of Medicine to create innovative solutions for caries treatment materials. Under the guidance of Drg. Rahmavidyanti Priyanto, Sp.KG, there are five students who are members of this exact research group, namely: Fadia Amalina Putri (FKG), Bachren Azra Saputra FKG), Marshanda Keysa Putri M. (FKG), Arfania Laily Rizky R. (FK) , and Darmawan Chandra Siswanto (FK).
Focusing on increasing the success of caries treatment, the five students developed a research by utilizing the potential of siwalan peel waste, which is a typical Indonesian coastal fruit, into Bioactive Composite Hydrogel as a therapeutic material for pulp capping treatments quickly and effectively. Siwalan peel was chosen as the main raw material for making the material, because it has a high chitosan content to optimize the tissue regeneration process. This research was successfully funded by the Ministry of Education and Culture and Uiversitas Brawijaya through the Student Creativity Program in Exact Research in 2024.
“Currently, there are still many people who don’t know about pulp capping treatment. They think that if they have cavities or deep caries, they need to be extracted or have root canal treatment,” said Fadia.
Fadia explained that pulp capping is a treatment that involves applying bioactive material to the thin dentin layer or exposed pulp to protect and stimulate healing of the pulp tissue so that the nerves and blood vessels within it remain vital. Unfortunately, the materials that are commonly used still have many shortcomings, such as taking a long time to regenerate tissue, low adhesion, and lacking bactericidal properties, thereby increasing the risk of failure.
Drg. Rahmavidyanti, Sp.KG as the supervisor explained that pulp capping treatment is considered a minimally invasive treatment but can prevent further damage to the dentin and pulp, so it is better than Root Canal Treatment (PSA).
“This research was initiated with the process of formulating bioactive composite hydrogel nano chitosan siwalan peel extract, then this material was given to molars of rats which were prepared to form an internal cavity to see the growth in the number and area of odontoblast like cells through histological observation,” said Bachren.
Based on the research results, it was found that bioactive composite hydrogel nano chitosan siwalan peel extract can increase the growth of odontoblast-like cells by binding the protein transforming growth factor (TGF- β1) so that reparative dentin as an indicator of pulp capping success can be formed more quickly than standard materials. In addition, the innovated material is proven to have good antibacterial ability and toxicity because it is able to inhibit the growth of Enterococcus faecalis bacteria – bacteria that cause caries in up to 0% and does not cause side effects on the morphology and physiology of mice.
Marshanda explained, “As research progresses, this material will continue to be developed and evaluated to meet all standards as a pulp capping material that is ready to be used by dentists for the wider community. We plan to maximize the scale of material development not only at the lab level and PKM program, but will continue to optimize it to international standards.”
“Even though it is still in the research and development stage, it is hoped that this material can be further optimized and used by the Indonesian as a solution to speed up pulp capping treatment without fear of side effects and re-inflammation,” added Arfania and Chandra.
It is hoped that this research will be able to make a real contribution to renewing science and technology studies through the application of nanotechnology-based hydrogel synthesis using waste which can be an alternative curative solution to the high number of caries cases in Indonesia in an effort to improve the quality of health of the people of Indonesia. [UB PR/ Trans. Iir]
