Effect of Alpha Hydroxy Acids as Dentin Conditioning Agents on Growth Factor Release: An In Vitro Study

The study aimed to evaluate the effects of alpha hydroxy acids and chelating agents on dentin conditioning for the release of growth factors.

The agents used for dentin conditioning included 17% ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid (EDTA), 10% glycolic acid (GA), 10% citric acid (CA), and 5% maleic acid (MA). Forty horizontally sectioned (SV1) human dentine slices were conditioned for 5 and 10 minutes so that the growth factor liberation reached quantifiable levels. Transforming growth factor beta-1 (TGF-β1) release and surface exposure were quantified by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). Growth factor measurement required immediately removing the solutions from each of the 48-well plates (with consistent dentine surface area and weight) and freezing at -20°C so that ELISA measured the growth factors.

After 5-min conditioning of dentine slices, CA was the most effective agent for growth factor release into the aqueous environment as measured by ELISA (post hoc Tukey's test p<0.05). Furthermore, dentine slices subjected to GA treatment for the same duration of time showed noticeably lower surface levels of TGF-β1 in comparison to the other agents employed.

Based on the findings of this in vitro study, a desirable biological growth factor-mediated effect may be gained when conditioning dentin with milder acidic or chelating agents such as CA, MA, and EDTA.