ABSTRACT
This experiment was aimed to shed light on the correlation and quantitative relationships between the width of bovine periodontal ligament (PDL) and the elastic modulus and, more over, between the width of bovine PDL and the capacity ratio of collagen fibers. The width and length of periodontal ligament of PDL were determined by stereomicroscope, and the elastic modulus by the materials testing systems. The collagen fibers in cross section of the specimen were stained with 1% Sirius Red F3B in saturated carbazotic acid, and the photo of stained PDL was collected by stereomicroscope. Image pro plus6.0 image analysis software was used to measure and calculate the capacity ratio of collagen fibers. It was found that there is a negative correlation between the width of bovine periodontal ligament and elastic modulus. The correlation coefficient is -0.21 and the simple linear regression model is Y = 71. 681-0.021x (Width of PDL); there is a positive correlation between capacity ratio of collagen fibers and elastic modulus. The coefficient correlation is 1.583 and the simple linear regression model is Y = -34.944 + 1.583x (The percentage of collagen fibers). Thus, the elastic modulus of bovine PDL increases while the width of bovine PDL decreases, and it increases while the capacity ratio of collagen fibers increases.