Incorporation of Pyranocoumarin, Xanthyletin, in Dental Composite Resins to Produce Biobased Composites: Evaluation of Cytotoxicity and Mechanical and Optical Properties.

Dental organs are naturally fluorescent. In dentistry, composite biomaterials have been sought that match not only the physical and chemical performance of the organs but also the optics so that they have a completely natural appearance. However, matching physical and optical properties has been challenging because materials are required to withstand the tensile forces of dental organs and materials that fluoresce at a specific wavelength. To achieve this, a novel strategy proposed in this work is to use a natural product extracted from the Bloodwood tree, xanthyletin, in dental materials. Xanthyletin, due to its chemical structure, is a natural fluorescent compound capable of dissipating stresses by the formation of hydrogen bonds in a composite resin. The objectives of this study were to extract xanthyletin from the Bloodwood tree and characterize it by NMR and FTIR, as well as to study its fluorescence through the determination of its quantum yield, and subsequently, to evaluate the effect of the addition of xanthyletin on the mechanical, optical, and physicochemical properties in the formulation of dental resin composite (DRC). The results showed that the use of xanthyletin at 0.3% by weight is sufficient to obtain the highest value of flexural strength and elastic modulus, with a statistically significant difference with respect to the control (