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Updated: Aug 27, 2025
Author Spotlight: Exploring Photodynamic Therapy with Curcumin in a Murine Model for Oral Candidiasis
Published on: October 27, 2023
Comparative effects of SWEEPS technique and antimicrobial photodynamic therapy by using curcumin and nano-curcumin on
Fatemeh Ensafi1, Mahta Fazlyab2, Nasim Chiniforush3
1Department of Endodontics, Faculty of dentistry, Tehran Medical Sciences, Islamic Azad University, Tehran, Iran.
Objectives:
This study aimed to compare the antimicrobial effects of the shock wave enhanced emission photoacoustic streaming (SWEEPS) technique and Antimicrobial photodynamic therapy (aPDT) with curcumin and nano-curcumin photosensitizers on Enterococcus faecalis (E. faecalis) biofilm in root canals of extracted teeth.
Materials And Methods:
This experimental study was conducted on extracted single-rooted human teeth. The teeth were decoronated at the cementoenamel junction, the root canals were instrumented with BioRace system, and their apices were sealed. Smear layer was removed, and the teeth were autoclave-sterilized. E. faecalis strains were cultured in sterile brain heart infusion (BHI) and a bacterial suspension with 0.5 McFarland standard concentration was prepared. The root canals were inoculated with the bacterial suspension and incubated at 37 °C for 4 weeks. The teeth were then divided into 12 groups (curcumin, nano-curcumin, curcumin + LED, nano-curcumin + LED, curcumin + SWEEPS, nano-curcumin + SWEEPS, curcumin + LED + SWEEPS, nano-curcumin + LED + SWEEPS, SWEEPS, positive control and negative control). The number of colony forming units (CFUs) was counted and analyzed by one-way ANOVA and Tukey's test.
Results:
A significant difference was noted in colony count among the groups (P<0.001). LED alone had the lowest and nano-curcumin + LED + SWEEPS had the highest root canal cleaning efficacy. SWEEPS along with curcumin, nano-curcumin, and LED significantly decreased the bacterial count compared with other groups (P<0.05).
Conclusion:
Application of the SWEEPS technique with curcumin and nano-curcumin as photosensitizer activated by LED in aPDT improved the reduction of E. faecalis in root canals.
