Cytotoxicity and Bioactivity of Calcium Silicate-based Cements in a Culture of Stem Cells from the Apical Papilla

The present in vitro study evaluated the cytotoxicity and bioactivity of commonly-used calcium silicate-based cements in a culture of stem cells from the apical papilla (SCAPs).

NeoMTA Plus (Avalon Biomed), Biodentine^TM (Septodont) and MTA HP Repair (Angelus) cements were evaluated using the 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyl-2H-tetrazolium bromide (MTT) and sulphorhodamine-B (SRB) viability assays. Cells were seeded (1*10⁴ cells mL^-1) in 96-well plates and exposed to 1:4 diluted extract in 24 h and 72 h. For the analysis of bioactivity, alkaline phosphatase (ALP) enzyme activity and Alizarin Red S (AZR) were assessed after 24 h of cell culture in 12-well plates (1*10⁴ cells mL^-1), where cells were exposed to 1:4 diluted extract on days 1 and 7. Minimum Essential Eagle's Medium alpha modification was used as control. ANOVA and Tukey's post hoc test were used to compare the different cements at each experimental time point.

No significant differences were found between the cements and the control specimens on MTT at 24 h and 72 h (P>0.05); however, the calcium silicate-based cement materials showed higher cell viability compared to the control group (P<0.05). In the 24-h SRB, NeoMTA Plus showed lower cell viability than Biodentine^TM and MTA HP Repair (P<0.05), with all groups similar to the control group (P>0.05). Compared to 24-h results, only NeoMTA Plus presented increased cell viability at 72 h (P<0.05). ALP activity was similar across the materials at 1 day (P>0.05). ALP activity was higher for Biodentine^TM when compared to NeoMTA Plus (P<0.05), nevertheless, it was similar to MTA HP Repair and control groups (P>0.05) at 7 days. At 1- and 7-day periods of AZR assay, Biodentine^TM presented higher levels of mineralized nodule formation (P<0.05).

All evaluated calcium silicate-based cements demonstrated cell viability and bioactivity, suggesting that these (bio)materials may be indicated for use in regenerative dentine-pulp complex procedures.