Functional and structural responses associated with potential restorative dental adhesives using human gingival...

The purpose of this study was to test the effectiveness of three potential bonding materials on the proliferation, viability, and functional capacity of the human gingival fibroblasts in an in vitro environment. The cultured gingival fibroblasts used were obtained from the American Type Culture Collection (ATCC). The three bonding materials used were polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA), OptiBond®, and Prime & Bond®. Fibroblasts were exposed to each bonding agent for durations of 24, 48, and 72 hours. Cellular protein levels determined that exposure to Prime & Bond® resulted in a significant increase in cellular protein (17.62±2.61 mg/mL) after 24 hours when compared to control and PMMA and OptiBond® exposures. Cellular protein levels were similar for experimental and control groups after 72 hours. The MDA assay showed no statistically significant differences at 24, 48, and 72 hours following exposure with PMMA or OptiBond® when compared to control cells. Membrane lipid peroxidation was not detected in the Prime & Bond® exposed cells. There is no significant decrease in cellular damage as measured by activity of LDH in the cell media at 24 and 48 hours. Prime & Bond® incubated with fibroblast cells for 72 hours resulted in a significant increase in LDH activity in the media (40.512 ± 4.437 IU/mg Protein) compared to control (19.975 ± 3.463 IU/mg Protein) and other dental bonding compounds. OptiBond® resulted in a decrease in reduced glutathione levels after 24 hours when compared to PMMA and Prime & Bond® exposure. No differences in intracellular levels were detected after 48 and 72 hours. This investigation suggests that the physiochemical characteristics of restorative dental adhesives have to be considered a key factor in the biocompatibility status.