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EFFECTS OF CYCLIC LOADING OF DENTAL COMPOSITES ON THE BIOFILM AND VIRULENCE OF E. FAECALIS
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2025-05
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Oral Biology
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https://doi.org/10.34944/zv6p-m846
Abstract
Introduction: Enterococcus faecalis (E. faecalis) is a Gram-positive, facultative cocci, commonly isolated from root canal infections. This study investigates how cyclic strain on biomaterial surfaces affects the formation of E. faecalis biofilms. Physiological masticatory forces are variable, and this research evaluates their impact on biofilm development under conditions simulating the oral environment during mastication. No previous studies have examined cyclic strain's effects on E. faecalis biofilm growth on dental biomaterials, making this a novel area of research.
Materials and methods: Rectangular composite beams were fabricated and exposed to E. faecalis in Brain Heart Infusion media and 1% sucrose at 37°C for 24 hours. These beams were then subjected to static and cyclic loading (εx = 0.1% and εx = 0.2%) using an actuator. Microbial analysis included biofilm biomass measurement (Crystal Violet staining), metabolic activity (MTT assay), EPS production, assessment of viability with CFU counts, and fluorescent staining. Molecular analyses examined gene expression via quantitative PCR for the genes esp, EfaA, epaA, and cylL. One-way ANOVA was used to test group differences, with significance set at 0.05.
Results: Our results showed that cyclic loading influenced changes in the properties of the biofilm of E. faecalis. We observed a significant increase in biofilm biomass, cell viability, and EPS production when comparing the samples in the low load group (εx = 0.1%) compared to the static group. Also, when assessing metabolic activity, we found significant differences between samples when comparing static groups and cyclic groups and furthermore, assessment of viability using fluorescent staining revealed an increase in viability for the low load experimental group when compared to the static group. Lastly, for our experiments evaluating gene expression using qPCR, we saw upregulation in cyclic groups compared to the static group for the genes esp, EfaA, epaA, and cylL.
Conclusion: In context of the results, we conclude that cyclic strains when compared to static surfaces affect the properties of biofilm growth of E. faecalis on dental biomaterials like composite, an area previously unexplored concerning oral pathogen.
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