| Grant number: | 13/18402-8 |
| Support Opportunities: | Regular Research Grants |
| Start date: | March 01, 2014 |
| End date: | February 29, 2016 |
| Field of knowledge: | Health Sciences - Dentistry - Dental Clinics |
| Principal Investigator: | Alan Roger dos Santos Silva |
| Grantee: | Alan Roger dos Santos Silva |
| Host Institution: | Faculdade de Odontologia de Piracicaba (FOP). Universidade Estadual de Campinas (UNICAMP). Piracicaba , SP, Brazil |
| Associated researchers: | Ana Carolina Prado Ribeiro e Silva ; Thais Bianca Brandão |
Abstract
Radiation-related caries (RRC) is a severe and frequent toxicity that affects patients who underwent head and neck radiotherapy (HNR). RRC is considered to be a multifactorial disease of difficult management, which is mainly attributed to indirect toxicities of radiotherapy. However, the exact role of direct effects of radiation on the dental structure and its consequent participation in the onset and progression of RRC as well as the reduced longevity of dental restorations has not been fully understood so far. Aims: The study will test the hypothesis that the direct effect of radiation has the ability to cause morphological changes in the microstructure of enamel, dentin, dentin-enamel junction (DEJ) and dental pulp of teeth extracted from patients who concluded HNR. Material and methods: 80 teeth divided into 4 groups will be studied. The test groups A (n=20) and B (n=20) will be composed by teeth affected by RRC and teeth of patients who concluded HNR but were not affected by RRC, respectively. The control groups C (n=20) and D (n=20) will be composed by carious and sound teeth, respectively, from healthy patients. This study will be based on histological (light microscopy and polarized light microscopy) and ultrastructure (scanning electron microscopy) analysis to evaluate the microstructural preservation of enamel, dentin and DEJ. Additionally, immunohistochemical analysis will investigate the vascularization and innervation of the dental pulp and in situ zymography will be used to study the gelatinolytic activity of post-HNR dentin through confocal fluorescence microscope. Expected results: We expect to achieve new scientific evidence that will improve the understanding of the direct effects of radiation on the microstructure of teeth mineralized tissues and the dental pulp. Also, it is probable that the results of this study will clarify if the direct effects of HNR on teeth are relevant to the onset and progression of RRC. (AU)
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