Reconstruction of human maxillary defects with nacre powder: histological evidence for bone regeneration

The defective areas in the premolar-molar region of maxillary alveolar bone of eight patients were reconstructed using powdered nacre from the giant oyster Pinctada maxima. Histological, microradiographic and polarized light studies of drill biopsies taken 6 months postoperatively showed that nacre was tightly bound to newly-formed bone. The nacre was gradually and centripetally biodissolved and replaced with immature and then mature lamellar bone. These results are in agreement with our previous experimental in vitro data indicating that nacre has good osteogenic properties.