1997 Volume 39 Issue 3 Pages 299-312
The present study examined the migration, orien-tation of cultured human gingival fibroblasts and in vitro formation of a new fibrous attachment to experimentally treated cemental surfaces of impacted and periodontally diseased roots. Trans-versally cut root slices of human teeth, 100μm thick, were prepared from impacted and peri-odontally involved teeth that were planed with hand scalers previously. Root slices were demineralized in citric acid and then attached to sheets of fibrob-lasts in culture dishes. The cell cultures were examined daily by phase contrast- and dark field-microscopy. After 4h of culture, fibroblasts had migrated and attached, were oriented approximate-ly perpendicular to the partially demineralized root surface, and had produced extracellular matrices. Sheets of cells and fibrial materials anchored between the cementun surface and the floor of the dish were formed, and newly secreted collagen fi-brils continuous with the exposed cementum col-lagen were observed after 1 week. There was no significant difference in the percent increase in cell attachment to dental roots between impacted and periodontally involved teeth after planing and par-tial demineralization of root surface cementum. These results suggest that the treatment by planing and partial demineralization of the root cementum of periodontally involved teeth gave a good condi-tion for attachment of fibrous tissue. This culture system is a useful model system for in vitro assess-ment of the treatment of periodontally diseased root surfaces and determing the mechanisms operat-ing in fibrous attachment to root surfaces.
