The technology commercialisation arm of Imperial College London, Imperial Innovations, has invested £650,000 as the lead investor in a £980,000 funding of OSspray, a dental technology company.
Co-investors included NESTA and The Capital Fund, managed by Yorkshire Fund Managers. This follows funding to date of £1,000,000, of which Imperial Innovations invested £600,000. Imperial Innovations now has a 31.3 per cent stake in OSspray.
OSspray has developed bioactive glass as a desensitising and cleaning agent for the air polishing of teeth. The dentist or hygienist fires a fine abrasive powder, in this case OSspay’s product Sylc, at teeth using a high pressure air stream. Sylc has advantages over existing products, being quicker and easier to use, more comfortable, and it cleans, brightens and desensitises teeth better than existing powders.
Traditional teeth whitening processes cannot be used on patients with sensitive teeth. OSspray’s bioactive glass helps overcome this problem. The chemical composition of the bioactive glass also means that, when combined with water or saliva, it forms crystals that become trapped in the dentine of the tooth and biologically bond into the mineral surface to promote regeneration of dentine and damaged tooth surfaces.
OSspray has signed distribution arrangements for the UK with Optident Ltd and White Cross GmbH in Germany, and has launched Sylc in Europe.
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