A Comparative In Vitro Analysis of Antimicrobial Effectiveness and Compressive Resilience in Chirata and Terminalia arjuna Modified Glass Ionomer Cement.

BACKGROUND: Glass ionomer cements are commonly utilized in dental restorations due to their biocompatibility, strong chemical bond with dental tissues, and ability to resist tooth decay. However, their effectiveness can be compromised by the presence of persistent cavity-causing microorganisms. Therefore, it is essential to consider incorporating antibacterial agents into these restorative materials. Swertia chirayita (S. chirayita) and Terminalia arjuna (T. arjuna) are well-known for their rich composition of phytochemicals that can potentially inhibit the growth of bacteria. Hence, the current research is focused on modifying glass ionomer cement with Chirayita and T. arjuna extracts to enhance its antibacterial properties. AIM: This research aims to determine the antimicrobial efficacy and compressive strength of glass ionomer cement modified with Chirayita and T. arjuna extracts. METHODOLOGY: Plant extracts were prepared from both Chirayita and T. arjuna. The powder and liquid components of conventional glass ionomer cement (GIC) were mixed, followed by adding these extracts at three different concentrations. To assess antimicrobial properties, typical strains of Streptococcus mutans and Lactobacillus were employed to test both the modified GIC and unmodified GIC (used as a control). For Chirayita and T. arjuna-modified GIC, minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) assays were conducted at three different concentrations. MIC was assessed at various time intervals ranging from 1 to 4 hours for modified and unmodified groups. Moreover, compressive strength was measured using cylindrical molds. The highest force exerted at the point of specimen fracture was recorded to calculate the compressive strength values in megapascal (MPa). RESULTS: The antimicrobial efficiency of Chirata and T. arjuna-modified GIC was evaluated using a MIC assay, indicating a statistically significant enhancement in antimicrobial potency against S. mutans and Lactobacillus within the modified groups in contrast to the control group (p<0.05). However, there were no notable changes in compressive strength when comparing the control group to the modified groups (p>0.05). CONCLUSION: The antimicrobial effectiveness against S. mutans was observed to be greater in both T. arjuna and Chirayita-modified GIC. In the case of Lactobacillus, Chirayita-modified GIC exhibited more pronounced antimicrobial properties compared to T. arjuna. Importantly, both extracts did not alter the compressive strength of Conventional (unmodified) GIC. Hence, Chirayita-modified GIC appears to be a promising restorative material for combatting recurrent caries. Additional investigation is required to assess the material's stability over an extended period.

Antimicrobial Efficacy of Glass Ionomer Cement in Incorporation with Biogenic Zingiber officinale Capped Silver-Nanobiotic, Chlorhexidine Diacetate and Lyophilized Miswak.

In the present study, Zingiber officinale is used for the synthesis of Zingiber officinale capped silver nanoparticles (ZOE-AgNPs) and compares the antimicrobial efficacy and compressive strength of conventional glass ionomer cement (GIC) combined with ZOE-AgNPs, lyophilized miswak, and chlorhexidine diacetate (CHX) against oral microbes. Five groups of the disc-shaped GIC specimens were prepared. Group A: lyophilized miswak and GIC combination, Group B: ZOE-AgNPs and GIC combinations, Group C: CHX and GIC combination, Group D: ZOE-AgNPs + CHX + GIC; Group E: Conventional GIC. Results confirmed the successful formation of ZOE-AgNPs that was monitored by UV-Vis sharp absorption spectra at 415 nm. The X-ray diffractometer (XRD) and transmission electron microscope (TEM) results revealed the formation of ZOE-AgNPs with a mean size 10.5-14.12 nm. The peaks of the Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) were appearing the involvement of ZOE components onto the surface of ZOE-AgNPs which played as bioreducing, and stabilizing agents. At a 24-h, one-week and three-week intervals, Group D showed the significantly highest mean inhibitory zones compared to Group A, Group B, and Group C. At microbe-level comparison, Streptococcus mutans and Staphylococcus aureus were inhibited significantly by all the specimens tested except group E when compared to Candida albicans. Group D specimens showed slightly higher (45.8 ± 5.4) mean compressive strength in comparison with other groups. The combination of GIC with ZOE-AgNPs and chlorhexidine together enhanced its antimicrobial efficacy and compressive strength compared to GIC with ZOE-AgNPs or lyophilized miswak or chlorhexidine combination alone. The present study revealed that The combination of GIC with active components of ZOE-AgNPs and chlorhexidine paves the way to lead its effective nano-dental materials applications.

Novel polymorphisms in UTR and coding region of inducible heat shock protein 70.1 gene in tropically adapted Indian zebu cattle (Bos indicus) and riverine buffalo (Bubalus bubalis).

Due to evolutionary divergence, cattle (taurine, and indicine) and buffalo are speculated to have different responses to heat stress condition. Variation in candidate genes associated with a heat-shock response may provide an insight into the dissimilarity and suggest targets for intervention. The present work was undertaken to characterize one of the inducible heat shock protein genes promoter and coding regions in diverse breeds of Indian zebu cattle and buffaloes. The genomic DNA from a panel of 117 unrelated animals representing 14 diversified native cattle breeds and 6 buffalo breeds were utilized to determine the complete sequence and gene diversity of HSP70.1 gene. The coding region of HSP70.1 gene in Indian zebu cattle, Bos taurus and buffalo was similar in length (1,926 bp) encoding a HSP70 protein of 641 amino acids with a calculated molecular weight (Mw) of 70.26 kDa. However buffalo had a longer 5' and 3' untranslated region (UTR) of 204 and 293 nucleotides respectively, in comparison to Indian zebu cattle and Bos taurus wherein length of 5' and 3'-UTR was 172 and 286 nucleotides, respectively. The increased length of buffalo HSP70.1 gene compared to indicine and taurine gene was due to two insertions each in 5' and 3'-UTR. Comparative sequence analysis of cattle (taurine and indicine) and buffalo HSP70.1 gene revealed a total of 54 gene variations (50 SNPs and 4 INDELs) among the three species in the HSP70.1 gene. The minor allele frequencies of these nucleotide variations varied from 0.03 to 0.5 with an average of 0.26. Among the 14 B. indicus cattle breeds studied, a total of 19 polymorphic sites were identified: 4 in the 5'-UTR and 15 in the coding region (of these 2 were non-synonymous). Analysis among buffalo breeds revealed 15 SNPs throughout the gene: 6 at the 5' flanking region and 9 in the coding region. In bubaline 5'-UTR, 2 additional putative transcription factor binding sites (Elk-1 and C-Re1) were identified, other than three common sites (CP2, HSE and Pax-4) observed across all the analyzed animals. No polymorphism was found within the 3'-UTR of Indian cattle or buffalo as it was found to be monomorphic. The promoter sequences generated in 117 individuals showed a rich array of sequence elements known to be involved in transcription regulation. A total of 11 nucleotide changes were observed in the promoter sequence across the analyzed species, 3 of these changes were located within the potential transcription factor binding domains. We also identified 4 microsatellite markers within the buffalo HSP70.1 gene and 3 microsatellites within bovine HSP70.1. The present study identified several distinct changes across indicine, taurine and bubaline HSP70.1 genes that could further be evaluated as molecular markers for thermotolerance.