Dental prostheses associated with biogenic silver nanoparticles: characterization and antimicrobial and antibiofilm activities

• Grant number: 23/17118-6
• Support Opportunities: Regular Research Grants
• Start date: July 01, 2024
• End date: June 30, 2026
• Field of knowledge: Health Sciences - Dentistry - Dental Materials
• Agreement: CONFAP - National Council of State Research Support Foundations
• Principal Investigator: Ljubica Tasic
• Grantee: Ljubica Tasic
• Host Institution: Instituto de Química (IQ). Universidade Estadual de Campinas (UNICAMP). Campinas , SP, Brazil
• Associated researchers: Raluca Savu ; Ricardo Wagner Dias Portela ; Thyerre Santana da Costa
• Associated scholarship(s): 25/08904-3 - Integration of biogenic silver nanoparticles into oral prostheses: A metabolomic analysis of the oral biome using NMR approach, BP.TT; 24/23377-7 - Synthesis and characterization of silver nanoparticles using biological method, BP.TT

Abstract

Prosthesis-related stomatitis or Denture Stomatitis, is an inflammatory reaction that occurs among other factors, mainly due to a fungal infection by Candida albicans and NCA (non-albicans Candida) in the oral tissues in patients with complete dentures or removable partial dentures. The majority of users of prosthetic devices develop this pathology, which is associated with the aging of the population, increased age of prosthetics, fungal infections, mucosal trauma and poor dental hygiene. Several Candida species apply different pathogenicity mechanisms such as biofilm formation, temperature adaptation and expression of molecules that can adhere to the surfaces of dental biomaterials, colonizing them. This infection is highly recurrent, given the adhesion of Candida to the polymeric surfaces of prostheses, as well as its increasingly prevalent resistance profile. Given this, it is necessary to verify the use of nanotechnology in this context due to the antimicrobial and antiviral properties of biogenic silver nanoparticles (AgNP@Bio) that can be synthesized through sustainable technology using microorganisms and without toxic reagents. AgNPs release Ag(I) and induce the production of reactive oxygen species (ROS), favoring oxidative damage in fungal cells, through the rupture of the membrane and cell wall of the microorganism. In dentistry, the literature reports the use of AgNP as antimicrobials and their use as a coating for the base resin of the prosthesis as an option to treat denture stomatitis in vitro. However, the published studies explored in vitro research, which did not consider the peculiarities of the oral cavity, such as the aging suffered by the oral thermal cycle and constant humidity. Thus, this research proposes to treat thermopolymerizable prosthetic surfaces with biogenic AgNP, aging them through exposure to temperature and humidity cycles equivalent to 1 month of use of prosthetic devices in the oral cavity and 5 months of use of prosthetic devices in the oral cavity, i.e. oral environment. After this, the color, roughness, fungicidal and fungistatic activity, interference with the formation of fungal biofilm and whether there were changes in the morphology of the biomaterial used will be checked. To this end, it is important to highlight that our research group has already published articles that refer to the presence of different species of Candida in denture stomatitis lesions in Salvador/Bahia, as well as their in vitro resistance and susceptibility profile to extracts of different propolis and biogenic silver nanoparticles, having also recently developed know-how for testing the activity of dental cements against different microbial agents. With this, this project takes a step forward in this chain of research activities, aiming at the development of national technology based on nanotechnology, where AgNP@Bio synthesized in Brazil will be associated with dental biomaterials. (AU)

Scientific publications

(References retrieved automatically from Web of Science and SciELO through information on FAPESP grants and their corresponding numbers as mentioned in the publications by the authors)

DA COSTA, THYERRE SANTANA; DELGADO, GONZALO GARCIA; BRAGA, CAROLYNE BRUSTOLIN; TASIC, LJUBICA. Insights into the fungal secretomes and their roles in the formation and stabilization of the biogenic silver nanoparticles. RSC ADVANCES, v. 15, n. 9, p. 14-pg., 2025-02-26. (23/17118-6, 23/02338-0, 14/50867-3)