Expression of chronic pain genes in apical periodontitis tissues.

AIM: To evaluate the expression of genes involved in chronic pain conditions in apical periodontitis (AP) tissues. METHODOLOGY: An electronic search was performed in Scopus and MEDLINE (via PubMed) databases to identify articles (n = 173) related to genes involved in chronic pain conditions. Full-text reviews of the selected articles allowed the prioritization of 16 genes to be investigated with regards to their expression in AP tissues. Periapical lesions (n = 42) were collected during surgical endodontic procedures and processed for mRNA extraction and investigation of target genes via RT-qPCR. Healthy periodontal ligament tissues obtained from third molar extractions were used as controls. Relative levels of target gene expression in AP and control tissues were normalized to GAPDH expression and compared using the 2-ΔΔCt method. Data analysis was performed using the Mann-Whitney U test with a statistical significance threshold set at p < .05. RESULTS: mRNA expression levels of MMP9, TIMP1, TNFA, CAMK4 and COMT were significantly increased in AP tissue samples compared with controls (p < .05). Positive correlations were observed between the expression of TIMP1 with COMT and CAMK4, TNFA with TIMP1 and CAMK4, COMT with CAMK4. CONCLUSIONS: This study confirms the upregulation of MMP9, TIMP1, TNFA in AP tissues and reports for the first time, the expression of CAMK4 and COMT as suggestive of their involvement in AP pathogenesis.

Antimicrobial action, cytotoxicity, calcium ion release, and pH variation of a calcium hydroxide-based paste associated with Myracrodruon urundeuva Allemão extract.

The extract of Myracrodruon urundeuva Allemão (aroeira), as a vehicle, associated with calcium hydroxide (CH) paste was evaluated based on cell viability, antimicrobial action, calcium ion release, and pH variation. Calcium hydroxide with propylene glycol was used as control. The pH variation was measured at 3, 24, 72, 168, 140, 360, and 720 h and calcium ion release was measured on days 7, 15, and 30. Cell viability was assessed with NIH/3T3 cells using MTT and crystal violet assays, after 24, 48, and 72 h. Antibacterial activity was determined by the disc diffusion method, while microbial reduction (Enterococcus faecalis) was evaluated using the time-kill test. The CH paste formulated with aroeira showed antibacterial activity against Enterococcus faecalis and further did not interfere with pH, calcium ion release, or cell viability; moreover, the formulation had antimicrobial activity and could serve as a vehicle for CH paste.