Antimicrobial, antibiofilm and anticaries evaluation of calcium polyphosphate coacervates with arginine incorporation associated or not with fluoride

• Grant number: 24/21081-3
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Scientific Initiation
• Start date: March 01, 2025
• End date: February 28, 2026
• Field of knowledge: Health Sciences - Dentistry - Pediatric Dentistry
• Principal Investigator: Fernanda Lourenção Brighenti
• Grantee: Ariele Cristina Pereira
• Host Institution: Faculdade de Odontologia (FOAr). Universidade Estadual Paulista (UNESP). Campus de Araraquara. Araraquara , SP, Brazil

Abstract

Dental caries, the most prevalent oral diseases (Kassebaum et al., 2015), is a chronic, multifactorial, and biofilm-dependent disease (Marsh, 2010; Selwitz et al., 2007) that significantly affects the lives of millions of people, particularly in developing countries like Brazil. In this context, calcium- and phosphate-rich compounds have been studied to increase the saturation of these elements in saliva and/or biofilm and to enhance the effect of fluoridated products. Additionally, arginine is a powerful ally in maintaining the ecological balance of the biofilm, and it also forms complexes with metal ions and anions. To overcome the challenges related to the prevention or reversal of initial carious lesions and maintaining biofilm homeostasis, our research group developed, in a previous study, biomaterials based on calcium polyphosphate coacervates (Ca-CPP). The aim of this study is to evaluate the antimicrobial, anti-acidogenic, and anti-caries activities of calcium polyphosphate coacervates with arginine incorporation, with or without the association of fluoride. For this, polymicrobial biofilms, obtained from the saliva of a volunteer will be cultured on bovine enamel blocks using an active adherence model. The following experimental groups will be tested (n=10/group): a. Culture medium without treatment (negative control); b. Ca-CPP without arginine incorporation (blank formulation); c. Ca-CPP without arginine incorporation (blank formulation) associated with F; d. Sodium fluoride ("NaF"; positive control); e. Ca-CPP with arginine incorporation; f. Ca-CPP with arginine incorporation associated with F; g. Isolated arginine. After four days of treatment, the biofilms will be dispersed by ultrasound and then analyzed for their microbiological composition (concentration of total anaerobic bacteria, mutans group streptococci, and aciduric anaerobic bacteria). The acidogenicity of the biofilms will be assessed by reading the pH of the culture medium at each change and by evaluating the production of lactic acid at the end of the experiment. The enamel blocks will be analyzed for the percentage of surface hardness loss.Data will be analyzed according to the assumptions of normality and homoscedasticity at 0.05.