Biomedical Applications of Nanosilicate Composites

Biomedical composites or biocomposites refer to the artificially synthesized heterogeneous materials that are composed of two or more ingredients with different chemical and physical nature where one component is a biopolymer. These composites are shown to have various biomedical applications ranging from bone tissue engineering, dental restorations, wound healing, and drug delivery. Though various inorganic materials such as hydroxyapatite and β-tricalcium phosphate have been tested and used clinically for bone regeneration and restoration, they have their own advantages and drawbacks. Nanosilicates are one of the most abundant natural inorganic mineral components present in the earth’s crust, in the form of mineral clay, which have recently gained importance in modern-day biomedical research. Montmorillonite, Kaolinite, and Halloysite are the three common natural nanoclays being used in various biomedical research. Laponite^® is the most used synthetic nanosilicate used for various biomedical research. Though mineral clays have been used directly and extensively in traditional medicines for various ailments, their nanosilicate forms separately have shown promising results in bone tissue engineering, dental restoration, drug delivery applications, and wound healing research.