A self-fitting material created by scientists that expands with warm salt water can provide filling for bone defects and act as a scaffold for new bone growth in reconstructing a person's face.

Scientist said that autografting is the most common method on filling bone defects in the head, face and jaw.

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Autografting is a process where surgeons harvest bone from a different part of the body (like the hip bone) and try to shape it to fit the bone defect.

Scientists use this method to assist patients in healing of the gaps in the head, face and jaw created by surgeries, injuries or birth defects.

Melissa Grunlan, one of the researchers, said the problem with an autograft is that it's in the form of a rigid material that makes it difficult to shape with irregular defects.

Harvesting bones for autografting can itself create complications at the place where the bone was taken, she said.

Scientist believe using bone putty and cement plugs as an alternative solution isn't ideal because these can become very brittle and hard.

Other bone putty and cement plugs also lack small pores that allow new bone cells to move in and rebuild damaged tissues.

To create this material, scientists used a shape-memory polymer (SMP) that can mold itself precisely into the shape of the bone defect without becoming brittle.

SMP can support the growth of new bone tissues and changes its shape in response to heat, they added

SMP is linked together by polycaprolactone, an elastic biodegradable substance used in many medical implants. It looks like a stiff sponge with many interconnected pores that can allow bone cells to migrate and grow.

SMP is coated with polydopamine, a sticky substance that locks the polymer into place by inducing the formation of mineral found in the bone.

Scientists said that SMP can help osteoblasts, cells that produce bones, spread throughout the polymer.

SMP is biodegradable, causing scaffold to disappear and leaving only new bone tissues behind.

Grunlan said that as of today, they're planning to test SMP in healing cranio-maxillofacial bone defects. She said the work they've done encourages them to move further into preclinical and clinical studies.