Established in 1909 in Bangalore, the Indian Institute of Science (IISc) is a research university for higher education and research in science, engineering, design, and management.
Researchers from IISc and Theranautilus, an IISc-incubated startup, have published a study in Advanced Healthcare Materials that shows nano-sized robots can improve the success of root canal treatments.
The researchers designed helical nanobots made of silicon dioxide coated with iron, which can be controlled using a device that generates a low intensity magnetic field. These nanobots were then injected into extracted tooth samples and their movement were tracked using a microscope.
The traditional procedure for the treatment of root canals involves removing the pulp — the infected soft tissue inside the tooth — and cleaning it with antibiotics or chemicals to kill the bacteria. However, many times the treatment fails to completely remove all the bacteria – especially antibiotic-resistant bacteria such as Enterococcus faecalis – which remain hidden inside microscopic canals in the tooth called dentinal tubules.
“The dentinal tubules are very small, and bacteria reside deep in the tissue. Current techniques are not efficient enough to go all the way inside and kill the bacteria,” explains Shanmukh Srinivas, Research Associate at the Center for Nano Science and Engineering, at IISc, and co-founder of Theranautilus.
By tweaking the frequency of the magnetic field, the researchers were able to make the nanobots move at will, and penetrate deep inside the dentinal tubules. “We have also established that we can retrieve them,” noted Srinivas.
Last updated: December 26th, 2025
