Sorption of fibronectin to human root surfaces in vitro

The purpose of this study was to determine the conditions that favor the sorption and retention of human plasma fibronectin to cementum. Rectangular root segments prepared from teeth extracted for orthodontic reasons were mounted on a capillary pipette and immersed in solutions of 125I fibronectin for assay of cementum sorption under various conditions. Kinetic studies showed sorption to be rapid, with 77% of the maximum fibronectin sorption occurring within 1 minute. Fibronectin sorption was reduced when added in conjunction with serum and was inhibited by monovalent ions (such as sodium), but enhanced in the presence of divalent cations (such as calcium). Exposure of cementum to serum partially blocked subsequent sorption of fibronectin, while cementum bound fibronectin was eluted by subsequent exposure to serum. Treatment of cementum with citric acid pH 1.1 (4 minutes) followed by 5% sodium hypochlorite (5 minutes) caused a significant increase in fibronectin sorption with maximum retention upon subsequent exposure to serum (P less than 0.05). Fibronectin sorption to cementum was: rapid, electrostatic in nature, competitive, reversible, Ca+(+)-facilitated, and maximized by prior treatment of the root with citric acid and sodium hypochlorite. It is concluded that sorption of fibronectin to cementum can be achieved for clinical gain; however, conditions of application can significantly influence both accumulation and subsequent release of root sorbed material.