Cytocompatibility and antibacterial properties of capping materials

The aim of this study was to evaluate and compare the antimicrobial activity and cytocompatibility of six different pulp-capping materials: Dycal (Dentsply), Calcicur (Voco), Calcimol LC (Voco), TheraCal LC (Bisco), MTA Angelus (Angelus), and Biodentine (Septodont). To evaluate antimicrobial activity, materials were challenged in vitro with Streptococcus mutans, Streptococcus salivarius, and Streptococcus sanguis in the agar disc diffusion test. Cytocompatibility of the assayed materials towards rat MDPC-23 cells was evaluated at different times by both MTT and apoptosis assays. Results significantly differed among the different materials tested. Both bacterial growth inhibition halos and cytocompatibility performances were significantly different among materials with different composition. MTA-based products showed lower cytotoxicity and valuable antibacterial activity, different from calcium hydroxide-based materials, which exhibited not only higher antibacterial activity but also higher cytotoxicity.