Manufacturing biocompatible surfaces has evolved into a cornerstone for downstream biomedical and pharmaceutical applications. In live tissues the structural and biochemical support for cells is maintained by various secreted extracellular matrix (ECM) components. The ex vivo deposition and network formation of these components on various scaffolds is crucial for subsequent cellular adhesion processes, thus vital for the production of tissue-like implants or effective cell-seeding on prostheses.
Dental enamel is one of the major tissues that make up the tooth in vertebrates. It is the hardest and most highly mineralized substance in the human body. To answer a number of questions, like aesthetic aspects of dental restorations, efficiency of tooth cleaning or the quantification of discoloration by adsorption of chromogens from tobacco, coffee, or tea, the optical characterization of human dental enamel is of high scientific and technical relevance.