Purpose: To investigate the cytotoxicity in vitro of three kinds of dental ceramic alloys on L929 mouse fibroblasts.
Methods: CCK-8 assay was a quick method to study the cell relative proliferation rate or cytotoxicity. L929 mouse fibroblasts were used to detect the cell relative proliferation rate of the three kinds of dental ceramic alloys(NiCr,CoCr and golden alloys containing 58% of gold) by CCK-8 assay. The DNA damage of L929 mouse fibroblasts was determined by single cell gel electrophoresis(SCGE). The data was statistically analyzed with SAS 9.0 software package.
Results: The relative growth rate induced by NiCr, CoCr and golden dental ceramic alloys was (75.9510+/-7.6244)%, (84.8920+/-8.2660)% and (88.5420+/-12.3611)%, respectively. NiCr ceramic alloys caused the most marked cytotoxicity(P<0.05), and there was no difference between CoCr ceramic alloys and 58% golden ceramic alloys(P>0.05). The cytotoxicity of the three kinds of metal ceramic alloys was all grade 1, i.e. mild cytotoxicity. The DNA damage of L929 mouse fibroblasts induced by NiCr ceramic alloys was most serious(P<0.05). There was no difference in the DNA damage between CoCr ceramic alloys and 58% golden ceramic alloys(P>0.05).
Conclusions: NiCr ceramic alloys can suppress the proliferation of the L929 mouse fibroblasts and promote DNA damage. While CoCr ceramic alloys which are similar to 58% golden ceramic alloys show less cytotoxicity than NiCr ceramic alloys. CoCr or 58% golden ceramic alloys should be used as crown and bridge for patients instead of NiCr ceramic alloy clinically.