SelenBio Inc™, Austin, Tex, a biotechnology company specializing in the prevention of bacterial biofilm formation for dental, healthcare, industrial, and consumer applications, has received FDA approval for its first product, DenteShield™.
DenteShield is formulated to inhibit bacterial colonization responsible for plaque, decay, white spot lesions, and gingival inflammation. The product is available through dental professionals and national distributor Patterson Dental, as well as regional distributor Midwest Dental, which serves both Texas and Oklahoma.
According to Ted Reid, PhD, SelenBio co-founder and chief science officer, selenium is an element that is common in the body and when incorporated into an organic molecule it can take an electron from sulfur and give it to oxygen, generating superoxide. “It is this ‘superoxide radical’ that kills bacteria on contact,” says Reid, adding that it not only kills bacteria on contact but it also kills specifically where necessary since this is a catalytic mechanism—it just keeps on going, like an “energizer bunny.”
Moreover, selenium is inexpensive, whereas silver and copper, which have been used in similar ways to kill bacteria, are more expensive. In addition, silver and copper lack the specificity selenium presents.
SelenBio trademarked their selenium product as SELDOX™. DenteShield is their first dental specific product.
