title: Ultrastructural study of a glass ionomer-based, all-in-one adhesive.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Reactmer Bond (Shofu Inc., Kyoto, Japan) is a glass ionomer (GI) based, tri-curable, all-in-one, filled adhesive. Both fluoroaluminosilicate glass (FASG) and fully pre-reacted glass (F-PRG) are used as fillers. This study examined the ultrastructure and elemental composition of resin-dentine interfaces that were treated with this adhesive.
  
  
  METHODS
  Dentine disks prepared from human third molars were abraded with either 600- or 60-grit SiC paper to create smear layers of different thickness. They were bonded using Reactmer Bond. Cryo-fractured dentine surfaces devoid of smear layers were also bonded by chemical-activation and GI reaction without additional light-activation, or allowing the GI reaction to proceed for 1min before the adhesive was applied and light-activated. Undemineralised and demineralised sections were processed for TEM examination and STEM/EDX analysis.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Resin-dentine interface from specimens with smear layers consisted of a mineral-dense surface layer that resided on top of a partially demineralised dentine. The partially demineralised zone was considerably thicker in the 600-grit than the 60-grit specimens. In smear layer-free specimens that were cured by chemical-activation/GI modes only, the surface layer concurred with the partially demineralised zone, and appeared as an electron-dense layer over the undemineralised intact dentine. Smear layer-free specimens that were cured by the light-activation of the partially neutralised adhesive contained incomplete amorphous surface layers only. Apart from colloidal silica, FASG fillers were the predominant filler type within the resin matrices. Peripheral hydrogel layers that contained electron-dense "seeds" were found around the FASG fillers. F-PRG fillers were only sparsely observed. In specimens that were laboratory demineralised with formic acid, phase separation of the unstained resin matrices into electron-dense and electron-lucent domains occurred. Artefactual dendritic deposits were found within the electron-dense domains.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The presence of a surface interaction layer on top of a partially demineralised zone along the resin-dentine interface suggests that either a GI-type reaction or precipitation of insoluble carboxylate salts around remnant apatite crystallites may occur when this single-step adhesive interacts with dentine. Appearance of artefactual dendritic deposits suggests that continuous ion movement is possible within the hydrophilic portion of the resin matrix in this fluoride-releasing adhesive.
authors.affiliation: Conservative Dentistry, Faculty of Dentistry, The University of Hong Kong, 34 Hospital Road, Hong Kong SAR, China.
authors.forename: F R
authors.initials: FR
authors.lastname: Tay
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Sano
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Tagami
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Hashimoto
authors.forename: K M
authors.initials: KM
authors.lastname: Moulding
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Yiu
authors.forename: D H
authors.initials: DH
authors.lastname: Pashley
mesh_terms: D017607:Aluminum Compounds / Q000737:chemistry; D001031:Apatites / Q000737:chemistry; D016477:Artifacts; D017554:Carbon Compounds, Inorganic; D002264:Carboxylic Acids / Q000737:chemistry; D011232:Chemical Precipitation; D001840:Dental Bonding; D003804:Dentin / Q000648:ultrastructure; D017220:Dentin-Bonding Agents / Q000737:chemistry*; D004577:Electron Probe Microanalysis; D005459:Fluorides / Q000737:chemistry; D005561:Formates / Q000737:chemistry; D005899:Glass Ionomer Cements / Q000737:chemistry*; D006801:Humans; D020136:Hydrogel, Polyethylene Glycol Dimethacrylate / Q000737:chemistry; D008027:Light; D008689:Methacrylates / Q000737:chemistry; D008854:Microscopy, Electron; D008855:Microscopy, Electron, Scanning; D011140:Polyurethanes / Q000737:chemistry; D017655:Silicon Compounds / Q000737:chemistry; D012822:Silicon Dioxide / Q000737:chemistry; D016369:Smear Layer; D013499:Surface Properties; D014233:Tricarboxylic Acids / Q000737:chemistry
chemical_list: C111562:4-acryloxyethyltrimellitic acid; D017607:Aluminum Compounds; D001031:Apatites; D017554:Carbon Compounds, Inorganic; D002264:Carboxylic Acids; D017220:Dentin-Bonding Agents; D005561:Formates; D005899:Glass Ionomer Cements; D008689:Methacrylates; D011140:Polyurethanes; D017655:Silicon Compounds; D014233:Tricarboxylic Acids; C447779:reactmer bond; C030544:formic acid; C029824:urethane dimethacrylate luting resin; D020136:Hydrogel, Polyethylene Glycol Dimethacrylate; C005044:hydroxyethyl methacrylate; D012822:Silicon Dioxide; C020328:fluoroaluminum silicate; D005459:Fluorides; C022088:silicon carbide