IADR Abstract Archives
Inhibitory Effects of Pine Bark Extract on Biofilm Formation
Objectives: Pycnogenol® (PYC), a phytochemical extract from bark of the French maritime pine tree (Pinus pinaster Aiton), consists of standardized proportions of procyanidins and phenolic acids, which are categorized into polyphenol. Various components of polyphenols have been reported to have antibacterial effects. The objective of this study was to evaluate the inhibitory effect of PYC on biofilm formation.
Methods: Antibacterial activity against oral bacteria was determined by relative viability after the treatment with the extract. Inhibitory effect of PYC on biofilm formation of S. mutans, P. gingivalis or A. actinomycetemcomitans on the bottom of culture plates was evaluated by colorimetric assay and viable counts of bacteria. Bacterial biofilms formed on cover glasses were stained with fluorescent LIVE/DEAD BackLightTM stain. Coaggregation of P. gingivalis with other bacteria was measured with visual coaggregation assay. Furthermore, effect of PYC chewing gum on plaque formation was estimated as follows. Periodontally healthy subjects were randomly divided into an experimental group and a placebo group and instructed to chew each gum for 4 weeks. Plaque index was examined at weeks 0, 2 and 4. The study has been conducted under the approval from the Ethical Committee for Clinical Research of Kanagawa Dental University (No. 131).
Results: The extract possessed marked antibacterial activity against oral bacteria, including cariogenic and periodontopathic bacteria with the treatment of 1000 μg/ml PYC for 10 min. An apparent bactericidal effect of PYC on biofilm formation of S. mutans, P. gingivalis or A. actinomycetemcomitans was observed in a dose-dependent manner. Fluorescent LIVE/DEAD staining revealed that PYC treatment inhibited the adherence and accumulation of S. mutans biofilm formation. The PYC gum group showed significantly reduced plaque accumulations compared to the baseline at four weeks (P < 0.01).
Conclusions: The results suggest that PYC inhibits biofilm formation by its antibacterial activity.
Methods: Antibacterial activity against oral bacteria was determined by relative viability after the treatment with the extract. Inhibitory effect of PYC on biofilm formation of S. mutans, P. gingivalis or A. actinomycetemcomitans on the bottom of culture plates was evaluated by colorimetric assay and viable counts of bacteria. Bacterial biofilms formed on cover glasses were stained with fluorescent LIVE/DEAD BackLightTM stain. Coaggregation of P. gingivalis with other bacteria was measured with visual coaggregation assay. Furthermore, effect of PYC chewing gum on plaque formation was estimated as follows. Periodontally healthy subjects were randomly divided into an experimental group and a placebo group and instructed to chew each gum for 4 weeks. Plaque index was examined at weeks 0, 2 and 4. The study has been conducted under the approval from the Ethical Committee for Clinical Research of Kanagawa Dental University (No. 131).
Results: The extract possessed marked antibacterial activity against oral bacteria, including cariogenic and periodontopathic bacteria with the treatment of 1000 μg/ml PYC for 10 min. An apparent bactericidal effect of PYC on biofilm formation of S. mutans, P. gingivalis or A. actinomycetemcomitans was observed in a dose-dependent manner. Fluorescent LIVE/DEAD staining revealed that PYC treatment inhibited the adherence and accumulation of S. mutans biofilm formation. The PYC gum group showed significantly reduced plaque accumulations compared to the baseline at four weeks (P < 0.01).
Conclusions: The results suggest that PYC inhibits biofilm formation by its antibacterial activity.