Dental resin curing blue light induced oxidative stress with reactive oxygen species production

Dental resin curing blue light has been used in the treatment of tooth bleaching and to restore teeth with resin-based composite fillings. However, there has been little consideration of its effect on oral tissues such as dental pulp and oral mucosa. The aim of this study was to investigate whether dental resin curing blue light irradiation affects the dental pulp, especially the blood vessels that are known as the first target of reactive oxygen species (ROS), which play an important role in vascular reactivity. We found that blue light irradiation increased the level of lipid peroxidation in isolated rat aorta blood vessels by measuring malondialdehyde. Furthermore, cell proliferative activity was decreased in a time-dependent manner and apoptosis of human aorta vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMCs) was induced. These results indicated that (ROS) such as hydrogen peroxide and hydroxyl radicals were generated in VSMCs by irradiation with blue light, and they induced cytotoxicity associated with oxidative stress, which increased lipid peroxidation and apoptosis. In addition, N-acetyl-l-cysteine, which is a typical intracellular antioxidant, protected VSMCs against cytotoxicity associated with oxidative stress. These findings suggested that antioxidants may be used to prevent oxidative stress in dental pulp by repeated and/or multiple treatments with blue light irradiation in future dental treatments.