Dentin tubules as a long-term sustained release carrier to accelerate bone repair by loading FTY720

The controlled release of drugs remains a huge challenge in the field of tissue engineering. Current research focuses on the construction of drug carriers by using various advanced technologies. However, the pore-like structure that exists within our human body is ignored. Herein, a dental particle loaded with FTY720 by using dentin tubules (Dent-FTY720) was successfully prepared, which could achieve long-term sustained release of drugs. Meanwhile, Dent-FTY720 significantly promoted bone defect repair because of the similarity in composition to bone including hydroxyapatite and collagen. Furthermore, the loaded drugs exhibited both anti-immune and anti-inflammatory properties. This research introduces a novel concept in drug loading, highlighting the potential of dentin tubules as a drug delivery system.