BIO-C® REPAIR ANTIMICROBIAL ACTIVITY ASSESSMENT

In dentistry, some bioactive materials are needed to correct certain complications and accidents during some procedures, such as root perforation. These materials must be biocompatible, and capable of inducing tissue repair. Mineral Trioxide Aggregate (MTA) has been considered the first choice for endodontic repair. However, this material has some limitations, such as discoloration of teeth, handling difficulties, prolonged setting time, and release of heavy metals. In order to improve these negative properties of MTA, bioceramics underwent several changes in its composition, size, and presentation, exhibiting potential bioactivity, that is, the ability to produce hydroxyapatite, influencing the bond between dentin and the repairing material. BIO-C® Repair (Angelus, Brazil) is a ready-to-use silicate-based product that, according to its manufacturer, has excellent consistency, easy application, acts as a barrier against microorganisms, stimulates healing and regeneration tissue, and does not contribute to tooth discoloration. As it is new material on the market, there are no published studies on its antimicrobial activity. Therefore, the aim of this study was to evaluate the antimicrobial activity of BIO-C® Repair. Thus, agar diffusion tests were performed to evaluate the antimicrobial action of BIO-C® Repair against Escherichia coli, Enterococcus faecalis, and Candida albicans. White MTA (Angelus, Londrina, PR, Brazil) was used as a positive control. The experiment was performed in duplicates and repeated 4 times. To compare the values of the halo of inhibition, the Student's T-test (Excel, Microsoft) was used, with two-tailed distribution, uneven variation between samples, and a significance level of 0.05. Our results showed that against E. faecalis (Gram-positive bacteria), both White MTA (control) and BIO-C® Repair presented inhibition zones of 13.22 mm ± 0.65 mm, and 11.79 mm ± 0.65 mm, respectively. Regarding Gram-negative bacteria, E. coli, White MTA, and BIO-C® Repair presented halos of 13.09 mm ± 0.33 mm, and 12.19 mm ± 0.43 mm, respectively. Likewise, the products showed halos of 9.15 mm ± 0.28 mm (MTA White), and 8.38 mm ± 0.13 mm (BIO-C® Repair) against the yeast C. albicans. Thus, it can be concluded that BIO-C® Repair has antimicrobial activity in vitro against E. coli, E. faecalis, and C. albicans, being a relevant, and desirable characteristic for the product.