Researchers at the University of Nottingham say they’ve come up with a new type of gel that can repair and rebuild tooth enamel — a potentially game-changing treatment, since dentistry today is largely limited to preventative care and halting the progress of decay, rather than reversing it.

As detailed in a new paper published in the journal Nature Communications, the protein-based gel uses the human body’s natural growth processes from early in life to form a durable coating and fill in small cavities in teeth.

After being coated on a target tooth’s surface, it extracts calcium and phosphate ions from saliva to encourage new growth of minerals. These minerals then merge with the existing tooth, effectively allowing it to regrow lost enamel.

While the gel has yet to be tested in human m

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