Sumita Mitra

Sumita Basu Mitra (born 1949) is an Indian-American inventor who is a professor at the University of South Florida. She developed the nanomaterials used in state-of-the-art 3M dental composites, which have been used in billions of procedures around the world. She is a Fellow of the National Academy of Engineering, National Academy of Inventors and the National Inventors Hall of Fame.

Sumita Basu Mitra
Alma materPresidency College Calcutta
University of Calcutta
University of Michigan
Scientific career
Institutions3M
Case Western Reserve University
University of South Florida
ThesisCross-linking of proteins by equilibrium transfer alkylation. (1977)

Early life and education

Mitra was born in India, where she spent her childhood.[1] She was an undergraduate student at Presidency College Calcutta and majored in chemistry.[2][3] After graduating, she joined the University of Calcutta for a master's degree in chemistry.[2] She moved to the United States for graduate studies and specialized in polymer chemistry. She was based at the University of Michigan, where she worked alongside Richard Lawton. She joined Case Western Reserve University as a postdoctoral fellow in polymer chemistry.[4]

Research and career

In 1978, Mitra joined 3M, where she worked as a senior chemist focusing on materials for health care. She specialized in nanotechnology, adhesion science and surface chemistry.[5] In particular, she focused on the realization of smart materials to help in dentistry.[6] At the time, dentists performed tooth repairs using a combination of two different materials, microfills and microhybrid composites.[4] Mitra designed the nanomaterials-based filler platform that 3M uses for all state-of-the-art dental restoratives.[7] Nanoparticles ('nanomeric filler particles') within these materials imitate the natural enamel of teeth, which allow them to remain glossy and strong. She showed that these materials could be used to restore teeth in any area of the mouth. These platforms enabled the realization of the Filtek composites.[6] These composites have been used in hundreds of millions of procedures around the world. The first generation of the composites were launched in 2002 and the second generation in 2005.[8]

After retiring from 3M in 2010, Mitra established her own consulting company. She joined the Institute for Advanced Discovery at the University of South Florida in 2021.[9] Mitra holds almost one hundred patents in nano composites and dental adhesives.[8]

Awards and honors

Selected publications
  • Sumita B Mitra; Dong Wu; Brian N Holmes (1 October 2003). "An application of nanotechnology in advanced dental materials". Journal of the American Dental Association. 134 (10): 1382–1390. doi:10.14219/JADA.ARCHIVE.2003.0054. ISSN 0002-8177. PMID 14620019. Wikidata Q51797501.
  • Mitra SB; Kedrowski BL (1 March 1994). "Long-term mechanical properties of glass ionomers". Dental Materials. 10 (2): 78–82. doi:10.1016/0109-5641(94)90044-2. ISSN 0109-5641. PMID 7758852. Wikidata Q54213758.
  • Sumita B Mitra; Chi-Ying Lee; Hoa T Bui; Daranee Tantbirojn; Richard P Rusin (28 November 2008). "Long-term adhesion and mechanism of bonding of a paste-liquid resin-modified glass-ionomer". Dental Materials. 25 (4): 459–466. doi:10.1016/J.DENTAL.2008.09.008. ISSN 0109-5641. PMID 19041127. Wikidata Q82761926.

References
  1. "Alumna Sumita Mitra Inducted into National Inventors Hall of Fame | U-M LSA Chemistry". lsa.umich.edu. Retrieved 2021-12-19.
  2. "Dr. Sumita Mitra -". Retrieved 2021-12-19.
  3. "European Inventor Award 2021". BhaskarChakravorti. 2021-06-19. Retrieved 2021-12-19.
  4. "Women in dentistry: Meet Dr. Sumita Mitra..." Dental Tribune International. 2021-08-11. Retrieved 2021-12-19.
  5. "ACS Honors Heroes Of Chemistry 2009". cen.acs.org. Retrieved 2021-12-19.
  6. "The National Academy of Engineering elects former 3M scientist, Sumita B. Mitra". 3M. 2021-03-10.
  7. "Mitra". www.epo.org. Retrieved 2021-12-19.
  8. "NIHF Inductee Sumita Mitra Invented Tooth Filling Material". www.invent.org. Retrieved 2021-12-19.
  9. "Three USF faculty members selected as new National Academy of Inventors Fellows". www.usf.edu. December 7, 2021. Retrieved 2021-12-19.
  10. "3M CARLTON SOCIETY – Members" (PDF). 3M.
  11. "3M's Sumita Mitra Wins American Chemical Society's Regional Industrial Innovation Award for Breakthrough Dental Restorative". 3M News Center. Retrieved 2021-12-19.
  12. "The Indian-American chemist won the 2021 European Inventor Award - Commonwealth Union". Retrieved 2021-12-19.
  13. "2 Indian-American innovation pioneers inducted into Inventors Hall of Fame". The Economic Times. Retrieved 2021-12-19.
  14. "National Academy of Engineering Elects 104 Members and 24 International Members". NAE Website. Retrieved 2021-12-19.
  15. Office, European Patent. "Dental nanomaterials trailblazer Sumita Mitra receives European Inventor Award 2021 in the "Non-EPO countries" category". www.epo.org. Retrieved 2021-12-19.
  16. "European Inventor Award 2021: Interview with finalist Sumita Mitra". Startup Terminal. 2021-05-28. Retrieved 2021-12-19.
  17. Inventors, National Academy of. "National Academy of Inventors Announces 2021 Fellows". www.prnewswire.com. Retrieved 2021-12-19.
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