No abstract

This study was conducted to assess the clinical effect of photodynamic therapy (PDT) in the decontamination of the deep dentin of deciduous molars submitted to partial removal of carious tissue. After cavity preparation, dentin samples were taken from the pulp wall of nineteen deciduous molars before and after PDT application. Remaining dentin was treated with 0.01% methylene blue dye followed by irradiation with an InGaAlP diode laser (λ -660 nm; 40 mW; 120 J/cm 2 ; 120 s). Dentin samples were microbiologically assessed for the enumeration of total microorganisms, Lactobacillus spp. and mutans streptococci. There was no significant difference in the number of colony-forming units (CFU) for any of the microorganisms assessed (p > 0.05). Photodynamic therapy, using 0.01% methylene blue dye at a dosimetry of 120 J/cm 2 would not be a viable clinical alternative to reduce bacterial contamination in deep dentin.

Aim: This study evaluated the acidogenicity of human milk by the dental biofilms of children with and without early childhood caries (ECC). Method: Biofilms of 16 children (7 with ECC; 9 caries free) were exposed to human milk or 10% sucrose solution in the crossover design, and the biofilm pH was determined. Results: Breastfeeding did not provoke a decrease in biofilm pH, irrespective of the children's caries status, whereas sucrose decreased the pH for both groups. In addition, higher ΔpH_5min (pH variation occurring at 5 min) was observed in the biofilms of ECC children (p < 0.05). The results suggest that breastfeeding may not contribute to ECC.

Dental biofilm bacteria can bind calcium ions and release them during a pH drop, which could decrease the driving force for dental demineralization (i.e. hydroxyapatite dissolution) occurring at reduced pHs. However, the kinetics of this binding and release is not completely understood. Here we validated a method to evaluate the kinetics of calcium binding and release to/from Streptococcus mutans, and estimated the importance of this reservoir as a source of ions. The kinetics of calcium binding was assessed by measuring the amount of bound calcium in S. mutans Ingbrit 1600 pellets treated with PIPES buffer, pH 7.0, containing 1 or 10 mM Ca; for the release kinetics, bacterial pellets previously treated with 1 mM or 10 mM Ca were exposed to the calcium-free or 1 mM Ca PIPES buffer, pH 7.0, for up to 60 min. Binding and release curves were constructed and parameters of kinetics were calculated. Also, calcium release was assessed by exposing pellets previously treated with calcium to a pH 5.0 buffer for 10 min. Calcium binding to bacteria was concentration-dependent and rapid, with maximum binding reached at 5 min. On the other hand, calcium release was slower, and according to the calculations, would never be complete in the groups pretreated with 10 mM Ca. Decreasing pH from 7.0 to 5.0 caused a release of calcium able to increase the surrounding fluid calcium concentration in 2 mM. The results suggest that dental biofilm bacteria may act as a calcium reservoir, rapidly binding ions from surrounding fluids, releasing them slowly at neutral pH and promptly during a pH drop.