Osteoblast-like Cell Proliferation, ALP Activity and Photocatalytic Activity on Sintered Anatase and Rutile Titanium Dioxide.

This study aimed to create a biomaterial from titanium dioxide (TiO2), which has been known to have photocatalytic and bone formation promoting effects. I expected that anatase titanium dioxide-based implants could promote bone augmentation and induce bone formation. Powdery anatase TiO2 was compression molded and sintered at 700, 800, 900, and 1000 °C to prepare sintered compact samples. X-ray diffraction and scanning electron microscopy were used to observe the surface of these samples. Furthermore, mouse osteoblast-like cells (MC3T3-E1 cell line) were seeded on the samples sintered at different temperatures, and cell proliferation was observed to evaluate the cell proliferation of the samples. The sample sintered at 700 °C was composed of anatase TiO2. The samples sintered at 800 °C and 900 °C were confirmed to consist of a mixture of anatase and rutile TiO2 crystalline phases. Moreover, the sample sintered at 700 and 800 °C, which contained anatase TiO2, showed remarkable photocatalytic activity. Those samples sintered at 1000 °C were transformed to the rutile TiO2. The cell proliferation after 7-14-days culturing revealed that cells cultured on the 700 °C sample decreased in number immediately after initiation of culturing. The cells cultured on TiO2 sintered at 900 °C markedly proliferated over time with an increase in the alkaline phosphatase activity, showing good MC3T3-E1 cell compatibility of the samples. The sample sintered at 1000 °C, which is rutile TiO2, showed the highest increase.

Effects of Attachment of Plastic Aligner in Closing of Diastema of Maxillary Dentition by Finite Element Method.

The aim of this study was to clarify the effect of attachment on tooth movement produced by a plastic aligner. Closing of a diastema, in which the maxillary right and left central incisors moved bodily, was simulated using a finite element method. Long-term orthodontic movements of the maxillary dentition were simulated by accumulating the initial displacement of teeth produced by elastic deformation of the periodontal ligament. The incisor tipped and rotated just after placement of the aligner irrespective of the attachment. After a sufficiently long time, the incisor was upright and moved bodily in the aligner with attachment, but the incisor remained tipped in the aligner without attachment. It was demonstrated that the attachment was effective for achieving bodily movement.

Effects of sugar ester and hydroxypropyl methylcellulose on the physicochemical stability of amorphous cefditoren pivoxil in aqueous suspension.

The improvement in physicochemical stability of amorphous cefditoren pivoxil (CDTR-PI) in aqueous suspensions by addition of sugar ester (SE) and hydroxypropyl methylcellulose (HPMC) was explained by prolonging the induction period prior to crystallization and the reduction in crystal peak intensity. Furthermore, the stabilizing effect of these additives in a multiple additive system was greater than in a single additive system. To determine the mechanism, by which these additives stabilized the amorphous CDTR-PI, we evaluated the surface states of CDTR-PI in suspension by measuring Raman spectra and zeta potential. The change in Raman spectra demonstrated that SE and HPMC interacted with CDTR-PI at the same interaction sites on CDTR-PI. The zeta potential reflected the adsorption phenomena of the additives and indicated that both SE and HPMC adsorbed onto particles of CDTR-PI with no apparent competitive interaction and the response was complementary. It was considered, based on this study, that HPMC and SE would stabilize amorphous CDTR-PI by different mechanisms; HPMC would mainly inhibit crystal growth by small amount of adsorption and SE would inhibit both crystal growth and nucleation by large amount of adsorption. This was considered to result in the hybrid effect in the multiple additive system.

Changes in surface properties by granulation and physicochemical stability of granulated amorphous cefditoren pivoxil with additives.

The evaluation of the physicochemical stability of granules of amorphous cefditoren pivoxil (CDTR-PI), alone or with polymers, demonstrated that granulated amorphous CDTR-PI with hydroxypropyl methylcellulose was the most stable. We measured glass transition temperature by differential scanning calorimetry (DSC). The molecular mobility of the whole granules did not change, and it was not consistent with the results of the evaluation of physicochemical stability. Peak shifts were observed in IR spectra of amorphous CDTR-PI with polymers after granulation, and the shifts were similar to those observed for spray-dried samples. Furthermore, the shifts were not observed after the granules were ground. Acid-base parameters, which were also measured by inverse gas chromatography (IGC), changed after granulation. These results suggested that on the surface of the granules, CDTR-PI and the polymers would be mixed monomolecularly, as in the spray-dried samples. The changes in the molecular state of a drug when mixed monomolecularly with a polymer on the surface of granules were successfully confirmed by IGC and IR.