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Biomedical subjects

T Koulourides

Publications and source records attributed to T Koulourides.

10 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed1992

An in vitro model for assessment of fluoride uptake from glass-ionomer cements by dentin and its effect on acid resistance.

This investigation presents an experimental model for studying interactions of glass-ionomer cements (GICs) with bovine dentin slabs. Fluoride incorporation was studied with five serial abrasion biopsies, each being approximately 10 microns thick. The time of interaction was a very important parameter, indicating continuous fluoride release from the GIC and diffusion into dentin over a 30-day period. Expressed in mass per volume (mg F/cm3), the fluoride incorporation reached 12.0 mg at the first and 2.5 mg at the fifth layer, several times greater than the baseline of 0.27 mg/cm3 in bovine dentin. A subsequent test of acid resistance in a lactic acid buffer (pH 4.0), followed by microradiography of lesions, showed a characteristic 40-microns-wide acid-resistant zone on surfaces exposed to the GICs. In contrast, the untreated control surfaces had lesions demineralized evenly from the surface to the intact tissue, without the higher-density zone at the surface of the lesion. The model seems promising for screening fluoride incorporation into dentin from fluoride-releasing dental materials.

Animals↗
PubMed1992

The ICT in situ experimental model in dental research.

The intra-oral cariogenicity test (ICT) in situ experimental model was introduced in 1964 for the study of caries on sample enamel in the human mouth. Slabs of human or bovine enamel are mounted with a Dacron gauze cover in the acrylic flanges of prosthetic appliances. The extent of enamel demineralization or remineralization of lesions is assessed from surface microhardness measurements and microradiography of the enamel sections. The ICT model offers the potential of studying various parameters related to caries. This publication presents a typical ICT study comparing the cariogenicity of 10% sucrose solutions containing 1, 3, 10, and 30 ppm F with that of the control solution, 10% sucrose (without fluoride). The treatments were applied to the ICT as 10-minute extra-oral immersions. The results indicate: (1) a strong effect of F in decreasing demineralization of sound enamel and increasing remineralization of pre-softened enamel in the ICT; (2) pronounced resistance to a subsequent in vitro acid test; (3) pronounced F incorporation into pre-softened enamel; and (4) a characteristic acid-resistant zone, as seen in microradiographs, associated with exposure to F. This in situ model enables one to study experimental caries with repeated testing of enamel that follows the development and/or the regression of subsurface enamel lesions, F incorporation, increased acid resistance, cariogenicity of substrates, and other parameters of caries that can be assessed under standard conditions of tooth substrate and microbial sheltering.

Animals↗
PubMed1989

Fluoride incorporation into and retention in remineralized enamel.

This study assessed the incorporation of fluoride into remineralized enamel and the stability of the incorporated fluoride under various test conditions. Lesions were produced on bovine enamel slabs by a two-day immersion in 0.01 mol/L lactic acid buffer containing 3.0 mmol/L Ca, 1.8 mmol/L P, and 1% CMC adjusted to pH 4.0 at 37 degrees C. The remineralizaing solution contained the same amount of Ca, P, and CMC, plus 150 mmol/L NaCl and 3 ppm F, and was adjusted to pH 7.0 at 37 degrees C. All slabs were exposed to this unstirred solution, which was changed every two days during the ten-day remineralizing period. The remineralized slabs were divided into four groups. Group A (the control group) received no further treatment. The other three groups were exposed for 24 h to either the intra-oral environment (Group B), a 1.0 mol/L KOH solution (Group C), or a 0.01 mol/L lactic acid buffer (Group D). Fluoride incorporation assessed by abrasion biopsy in 10-microns layers showed about 10,000 ppm F maximum in Group A. Similar levels of fluoride concentration from the surface to approximately 30 microns thick were found in Groups A, B, and C. No appreciable fluoride was released from remineralized slabs from Groups B or C, and only a small fraction from Group D. Statistical analyses of the fluoride values showed no significant differences between the various test conditions in any of the layers sampled. No difference was evident in the Ca/P ratio between the ten-day remineralized enamel (Group A) and the treatment groups. The lack of appreciable fluoride loss from enamel with any of the above three conditions indicated a stable fixation of fluoride in the remineralized enamel lesions.

Analysis of Variance↗
PubMed1988

Mineral density and fluoride content of in vitro remineralized lesions.

This in vitro investigation studied the remineralization of experimental caries lesions in bovine enamel by use of three methods: (1) surface microhardness, (2) microradiography, and (3) abrasion biopsy for mineral density and fluoride content. The lesions were produced by a two-day exposure to 0.01 mol/L lactic acid/sodium hydroxide buffer partially saturated with 3.0 mmol/L Ca, 1.8 mmol/L P, in 1% CMC, at pH 4.0 and 37 degrees C. The lesions were exposed to a remineralizing solution containing 3.0 mmol/L Ca, 1.8 mmol/L P, and 3 ppm F in 1% CMC at pH 7.0 and 37 degrees C for two, six, and ten days, with solution changes every two days. The data derived from the three methods are presented in sequence from the baseline and at days two, six, and ten of the remineralizing treatment. Microhardness measurements showed hardness recoveries of 35.9, 78.9, and 87.5%, respectively. Microradiography suggested complete recovery with the ten-day remineralization. Abrasion biopsy of successive 10-micron layers to a depth of 100 micron indicated 15.2, 39.8, and 68.8% mineral density recoveries, with fluoride content of the surface layer increasing from a baseline of 300 ppm to 4600, 9000, and 9800 ppm F for the 2, 6, 10 days of remineralization, respectively. Subsequent acid-etching of thin sections from the ten-day-remineralized specimens showed that the fluoride-enriched remineralized area was more resistant to acid dissolution than was the underlying normal enamel.

Animals↗
PubMed1977

Combined effects of sucrose and fluoride on experimental caries and on the associated microbial plaque.

In an experimental model, slabs of sound and presoftened bovine enamel were worn in the human mouth for seven days except for periodic removal for in vitro exposure to experimental variables. Supplementation with 3% sucrose for 10 minutes, four times daily for seven days yielded predicted levels of experimental caries. Parallel exposure to 3% sucrose containing 100 ppm fluoride sharply reduced or negated the resultant caries in originally sound enamel, and reversed the simulated pre-experimental caries in most samples of presoftened enamel. Serial layers of test enamel surfaces showed high levels of fluoride accumulated in the originally sound enamel, and even higher levels in the presoftened enamel that had been suppemented with sucrose-fluoride solution. Quantitation of the plaqye microbial flora showed that the fluoride ion exerted no detectable influence. Consistent with the findings in previous studies, some correlation appeared to exist between the degree of experimental caries and that proportion of total plaque that was comprised of S salivarius. S mutans, or lactobacilli.

Adult↗
PubMed1977

Microbial characterization of an experimental cariogenic plaque in man.

Experimentally induced plaque seemed to originate by direct contact inoculation from the vestibular mucosa and saliva. During the next seven days, this plaque developed its own characteristics. Populations of Streptococcus mutans usually less than 2% of total streptococci population in plaques that were less than three days old, increased between days 3 and 7. Proportions of S sanguis, high in early samples, decreased after day 3. Populations of S salivarius, which usually outnumbered other streptococci, fluctuated widely through day 3, and then increased in proportion in subjects who were more productive of experimental caries, but decreased in subjects who were less productive. Proportions of plaque flora comprising lactobacilli paralleled those of S salivarius.

Adolescent↗