3D and 4D printing in dentistry and maxillofacial surgery: Printing techniques, materials, and applications.

3D and 4D printing are cutting-edge technologies for precise and expedited manufacturing of objects ranging from plastic to metal. Recent advances in 3D and 4D printing technologies in dentistry and maxillofacial surgery enable dentists to custom design and print surgical drill guides, temporary and permanent crowns and bridges, orthodontic appliances and orthotics, implants, mouthguards for drug delivery. In the present review, different 3D printing technologies available for use in dentistry are highlighted together with a critique on the materials available for printing. Recent reports of the application of these printed platformed are highlighted to enable readers appreciate the progress in 3D/4D printing in dentistry.

Incorporation of magnetic NaX zeolite/DOX into the PLA/chitosan nanofibers for sustained release of doxorubicin against carcinoma cells death in vitro.

In the present study, the magnetic NaX nanozeolites were synthesized via microwave heating method and loaded into the PLA/chitosan solution. Doxorubicin (DOX) as an anticancer drug was simultaneously incorporated into the PLA/chitosan solution and the electrospinning process was used to fabricate the PLA/chitosan/NaX/Fe3O4/DOX nanofibers for sustained release of DOX against carcinoma cells death. The synthesized nanozeolites were characterized using X-ray diffraction (XRD), field emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM) and energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDX) analysis. The scanning electron microscopy (SEM) was used to determine the morphology and fiber diameter distribution of synthesized nanofibers. The DOX loading efficiency and in vitro DOX release profiles from nanofibers were investigated. The kinetic models including zero-order, Higuchi and Korsmeyer-Peppas were used to analyze the release mechanism of DOX from nanofibers. The effect of ferrite nanoparticles on the DOX release from chitosan/PLA/NaX/DOX and chitosan/PLA/NaX/Fe3O4/DOX nanofibers have been investigated in the presence of magnetic field and without magnetic field. The antitumor activity of synthesized nanofibers was also investigated on the carcinoma cells death. The maximum killing percentage of H1355 cells was found to be 82% using DOX loaded chitosan/PLA/NaX/ferrite in the presence of external magnetic field after 7 days of treatment.