Reversing Enamel Mineralization Inhibition Using Amyloid-like Protein Film

Abstract

Enamel remineralization holds considerable promise for dental caries, yet clinical translation remains hampered by the spontaneous deposition of acquired salivary pellicle (ASP), which passivates enamel surfaces and suppresses mineralization kinetics. Here, we present an ASP-repelling mineralization strategy based on a phase-transitioned bovine serum albumin (PTB) nanocoating fabricated via amyloid-like protein self-assembly. The PTB nanocoating confers robust antifouling properties that effectively inhibit ASP adsorption while simultaneously providing exceptional biomineralization activity. Under simulated physiological oral conditions, PTB drives heterogeneous nucleation and crystallization of calcium phosphate, generating a dense, well-integrated remineralized layer for enamel restoration. Both in vitro and in vivo evaluations demonstrate that ASP-coated enamel exhibits markedly attenuated remineralization capacity, whereas PTB treatment reverses this inhibition by efficiently repelling ASP and leveraging its abundant amino acid residues alongside amyloid-like architectures to direct mineral deposition. This work elucidates the interaction between ASP and remineralizing interfaces, providing a conceptually novel and clinically promising avenue to overcome remineralization barriers for caries prevention and enamel restoration.