Antifungal activity of endosequence root repair material and mineral trioxide aggregate.

Introduction: The purpose of this study was to investigate the antifungal activity of Endosequence Root Repair Material (ERRM; Brasseler USA, Savannah, GA) as compared with mineral trioxide aggregate (MTA) using Candida albicans.

Methods: All materials were packed into sterilized intravenous tubing to obtain standardized samples and allowed to set for 3 or 24 hours and then exposed to a suspension of C. albicans for incubations of 24 or 48 hours. To analyze the mechanisms of the material's antifungal activity, additional samples of each test material were prepared in the same manner and allowed to set for 24 hours; these were then incubated in a culture medium for 24 hours. The pH of each conditioned media was measured before transferring to wells containing C. albicans. The development of biofilm was analyzed after 24 and 48 hours with 2,3-bis (2-methoxy-4-nitro-5-sulfophenyl)-5-([phenyl amino] carbonyl)-2H-tetrazolium hydroxide reduction assay.

Results: Materials in both experimental groups significantly limited biofilm formation at each interval (ie, 24 and 48 hours). After incubating for a 24-hour period in the presence of C. albicans, ERRM in both experimental groups showed a reduction in biofilm formation that was statistically significant in comparison with MTA. However, when set for 24 hours and incubated for 48 hours, gray MTA and white MTA showed a more substantial reduction in biofilm formation than comparable samples of ERRM. Cultured media conditioned with test materials showed statistically significant antifungal biofilm activity after 48 hours.

Conclusions: All materials tested have comparable antifungal biofilm activity. It appeared that changing the environment, such as the pH, contributed to this activity.