Bioglass: Bonding Materials with Bone

Some biomaterials can actually chemically bond with your bones like they're part of your body.

Larry Hench discovered Bioglass in the sixties, and it's so revolutionary that it's now in

your Sensodyne toothpaste. The secret is in the composition: less than sixty percent silica with

high calcium and sodium content creates a material that forms a hydroxyapatite layer,

the same mineral in your bones. The bond is so strong that sometimes the implant or bone

breaks before the connection does. Even crazier, some formulations bond with soft tissue

too. But add just three percent aluminum oxide and the magic stops completely.

Scientists mapped out exactly which compositions work, creating materials that either bond