Objective: To evaluate the effects of Zoledronic Acid (ZA), a nitrogen containing bisphosphonate, on odontoblast-like cells MDPC-23.
Method: The cells were seeded (1.5x104 cells/cm²) in wells of 24-well dishes for 48 hours in complete culture medium (DMEM).After this period, the complete DMEM was replaced by DMEM with no fetal bovine serum (DMEM-FBS) and the cells were incubated for 24 hours. Two concentrations of ZA (1 or 5uM) in DMEM-FBS were applied on the cells for 48 hours. Then, the cell metabolism (MTT assay), total protein production, alkaline phosphatase (ALP) activity and cell morphology (SEM) were evaluated. Gene expression of Col-1 and ALP was determined by Real Time PCR (qPCR). Data were evaluated by Tukey test for pairwise comparisons (α=0.05).
Result: The concentration of 5uM of ZA caused a significant cell metabolism reduction (p<0.05). Both concentrations of ZA caused decrease on total protein production and ALP activity, which was dose-related (p<0.05). In addition, both ZA concentrations caused cell death and morphologic changes in MDPC-23 cells that remained attached to the substrate. It was demonstrated that 1uM ZA increase the Col-I gene expression (p,0.05). On the other hand, 5uM ZA caused a significant decrease in ALP expression, when compared to control group and 1uM (p,0.05).
Conclusion: ZA presented a significant cytotoxic effect on odontoblast-like cells.