Bioactive ceramic-based materials: beneficial properties and potential applications in dental repair and regeneration

Bioactive ceramics, primarily consisting of bioactive glasses, glass–ceramics, calcium orthophosphate ceramics, calcium silicate ceramics and calcium carbonate ceramics, have received great attention in the past decades given their biocompatible nature and excellent bioactivity in stimulating cell proliferation, differentiation and tissue regeneration. Recent studies have tried to combine bioactive ceramics with bioactive ions, polymers, bioactive proteins and other chemicals to improve their mechanical and biological properties, thus rendering them more valid in tissue engineering scaffolds. This review presents the beneficial properties and potential applications of bioactive ceramic-based materials in dentistry, particularly in the repair and regeneration of dental hard tissue, pulp–dentin complex, periodontal tissue and bone tissue. Moreover, greater insights into the mechanisms of bioactive ceramics and the development of ceramic-based materials are provided.