In Vitro Oral Care Product Laboratory Testing

In vitro oral care product laboratory testing to evaluate performance and marketing claims, supporting product development, including stain removal, stain prevention, whitening, gloss, brushing performance, abrasivity, erosion and dentine tubule blockage assessment and the design of bespoke models for your novel products

In vitro laboratory testing for oral care products to determine function, performance and efficacy can help to accelerate product development and support marketing claims. To protect your brand and meet your consumer's expectations, you will need to demonstrate that your novel oral care products perform well, and that you can support your marketing claims such as achieving whiter teeth, stain removal, stain prevention, anti-plaque, anti-calculus properties or increased tooth gloss or decreased product abrasivity. 

In vivo clinical studies for oral care products are the gold standard in terms of product assessment, however, these can be rather complex, time-consuming and expensive. Instead, a well-designed in vitro test can often yield the required data much more quickly and at a lower cost. Such studies, whether they are to support early-stage development of a product formulation or in support of marketing claims or pack claims, may be rapidly carried out to generate robust data to support screening of oral care product formulations to target those most promising for your human oral care clinical studies. Data from in vitro testing can enables rigorous assessment supporting product development and advertising claims.

In Vitro Laboratory Testing Supporting Claims and Product Development

Our in vitro oral care laboratory team design and conduct evaluation studies for toothpaste, toothbrushes, interproximal devices, floss, mouthwashes, gels and tablets, and all novel oral care products. We help innovators and product developers to accelerate their development timelines, whilst delivering data and insight on product efficacy and performance. Such studies may involve routine and bespoke methodologies in the areas of stain removal, stain prevention, whitening, gloss, brushing performance, abrasivity, erosion and dentine tubule blockage.

We are proficient at preparing dental hard tissue samples such as enamel blocks (human and bovine) and dentine discs. Our laboratory is equipped with a variety of wafering saws, wire saws, lapping and polishing machines enabling us to produce samples to any desired specification or finish. We can also produce artificial lesions for use in a variety of enamel remineralisation studies. 

Our laboratories also provide sample analysis in support of your oral care clinical studies (e.g. fluoride, calcium and, other active agents) and can carry out SEM and surface microhardness analysis of in situ hard tissue samples. We are inspected and licensed by the Human Tissue Authority (HTA). Our GCP and GLP compliant bioanalytical laboratories are inspected by the MHRA.  

In Vitro Models and Bespoke Method Development:

• Anti-Stain, Stain Removal, and Whitening Testing
• Anti-plaque and Anti-calculus Testing
• Abrasivity / tissue loss using 2-D probe profilometry
• Artificial brushing machines for cleaning/abrasivity testing
• Cleaning evaluation of toothbrushes, interdental brushes, flosses and tapes
• Enamel erosion by acidic drinks or foods
• Impact of tooth colouration by food, drinks or pharmaceuticals
• Dentinal tubule blockage experiments for sensitivity claims
• Pellicle Cleaning Ratio (PCR)

Hard Tissue Services:

• Human and bovine hard tissue sample preparation (enamel/dentine) including hydroxyapatite
• Supply of Discs/Blocks of dental restoration materials
• Artificial lesion preparation in enamel samples using acid gels

Bioanalytical and Instrumental Measurements:

• Surface Microhardness (SMH) evaluation of human/bovine enamel/dentine 
• Fluoride/potassium/calcium/zinc analysis of plaque and saliva 
• Oral malodour assessment using GC / OralChroma / Halimeters
• Plaque/saliva sample preparation for active agent analysis
• Operation of Periotrons for Gingival Crevicular Fluid Analysis

With over 20 years of experience in vitro oral care studies we have been a trusted partner for developers and manufacturers of oral care products. Our scientists deliver Total Quality Assurance for our customers, enabling them to power ahead safely by offering in vitro method development for bespoke models and screening of oral care products to target those most promising for further product development with rigorous assessment supporting safety, regulatory compliance, and advertising claim support.