When most people think of mussels, what immediately comes to mind might be a savory seafood dish or favorite seafood restaurant. But to Dr. Alireza Moshaverinia and his team of researchers at the UCLA School of Dentistry, it’s the ability that mussels have to stick to wet surfaces that is of particular interest.

Partially inspired by this concept and with support from CIRM, the team of researchers developed the first adhesive hydrogel specifically to regenerate bone and tissue defects following head and neck injuries.

Over the past few years, surgeons and clinicians have began to use hydrogels to administer stem cells to help regenerate lost tissues and for bone defects. Hydrogels are beneficial because they can be effective at carrying stem cells to targeted areas inside the body. However, when used in surgeries of the mouth, they tend to become less effective because blood and saliva prevent them from properly adhering to the targeted site. As a result of this, the stem cells don’t stay in place long enough to deliver their regenerative properties.

To help with this problem, the researchers at UCLA developed a new hydrogel by adding alginate into the mix. Alginates are found in the cells of algae and form a sticky, gum-like substance when wet.

The scientists then tested their new hydrogel by loading it with bone building stem cells and applying it to the mouths of rats with an infectious disease that affects the bone structure. They then sealed the hydrogel in place and applied a light treatment, similar to what dentists use in humans to solidify dental fillings.

The results showed that the bone around the implants in all of the rats had completely regenerated.

In a news release from UCLA, Dr. Moshaverinia elaborates on what this study means for potential future treatments.

“The light treatment helped harden the hydrogel, providing a more stable vehicle for delivery of the stem cells. We believe that our new tissue engineering application could be an optimal option for patients who have lost their hard and soft craniofacial tissues due to trauma, infection or tumors.”

The full study was published in Science Translational Medicine.