title: The influence of root canal sealer on extended intracanal survival of Enterococcus faecalis with and without gelatinase production ability in obturated root canals.
abstract: Enterococcus faecalis can survive for extended periods in obturated root canals. In this study, the hypotheses tested were that long-term survival of E. faecalis is dependent on (1) the type of endodontic sealer and (2) the capacity for microbial gelatinase activity, a potential "virulence" trait identified previously in clinical isolates. Root canals of extracted human canines (n=95) were inoculated with either E. faecalis OG1RF or its gelatinase-negative mutant E. faecalis TX5128. After 48 hours of incubation at 37 degrees C, canals were obturated with gutta-percha and either the epoxy-resin-based AH-Plus (Dentsply, De Trey, Konstanz, Germany), the silicone-based RoekoSeal (Coltène/Whaledent, Langenau, Germany), or zinc oxide eugenol-based Roth's sealer (Root Canal Cement Type 801; Roth International Ltd, Chicago, IL). Access cavities were sealed. After 8 months of incubation at 37 degrees C, viable E. faecalis was recovered from more teeth sealed with RoekoSeal (95%) compared with AH-Plus (40%) (p=0.0004, Fisher's exact test) and Roth's sealer (45%) (p=0.0012, Fisher's exact test). In the RoekoSeal groups, viable counts of E. faecalis OG1RF were higher than E. faecalis TX5128 (p=0.03, Mann-Whitney U test) suggesting that gelatinase activity plays a role in long-term survival of E. faecalis in obturated root canals.
authors: Department of Cariology, Restorative Sciences and Endodontics, The University of Michigan, School of Dentistry, Ann Arbor, MI 48109-1078, USA. csedgley@umich.edu
authors: Christine M
authors: CM
authors: Sedgley
mesh_terms: D016009:Chi-Square Distribution; D003786:Dental Pulp Cavity / Q000382:microbiology* / Q000648:ultrastructure; D013293:Enterococcus faecalis / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D018093:Gelatinases / Q000096:biosynthesis*; D006801:Humans; D012387:Root Canal Filling Materials / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D012389:Root Canal Obturation / Q000379:methods*; D018709:Statistics, Nonparametric
chemical_list: D012387:Root Canal Filling Materials; D018093:Gelatinases