Yulex, an agricultural-based biomaterials company, and Four D Rubber, a U.K.-based manufacturer of latex sheeting for the dental, fitness, clothing, and industrial markets, have developed the first plant-based, latex allergy-friendly dental dam.
The Yulex dental dam will be made from guayule-based biorubber material. Guayule is a renewable, nonfood, latex allergy-friendly crop grown in the U.S, the companies noted.
Yulex applies sustainable agriculture, clean bioprocessing, and materials science to replace imported Hevea latex and synthetic materials.
A desert plant indigenous to the Southwest U.S., guayule is a new industrial crop and the only species other than Hevea that has been used for rubber production on a commercial scale. Guayule requires low water consumption, is latex allergy-friendly, and has a clean manufacturing process, according to Yulex.
