Design and Evaluation of Antibiofilm Dental Adhesives Incorporating Marine Alkaloid-Inspired Compounds

Abstract

Biofilms are communities of microorganisms that can adhere to a variety of surfaces via a self-produced extracellular polymeric matrix. The oral cavity provides many examples of the destructive potential of biofilms, which lead to primary and secondary caries. Current methacrylate-based dental biomaterials remain defenseless against biofilm formation, an important and still unmet need in the field. This project aims to synthesize and test anti-biofilm small molecules derived from marine alkaloids for use in dental biomaterials by covalently conjugating a bioactive heterocyclic headgroup to hydroxyethyl methacrylate HEMA, affording H10/HEMA. This compound was tested as an additive to a dental methacrylate resin blend at concentrations of 0, 4, 8, and 12 wt%. Mechanical integrity and biological performance were evaluated for the different experimental groups using degree of conversion, flexure strength, and crystal violet assay. Increasing the concentration of H10/HEMA showed a promising inhibition capacity against Streptococcus Mutans biofilm formation, but it seems to negatively impact the structure of the polymer network. Preliminary calorimetry studies suggest that incorporating H10/HEMA yields a more amorphous network, potentially due to the presence of rigid, bulky functional groups. Future studies should confirm biofilm-inhibitory capacity, further evaluate the effect of H10/HEMA on dental polymer networks, and assess the mechanical and biological performance of H10/HEMA at lower concentrations. Furthermore, designing and evaluating a more flexible, mobile monomer with the bioactive warhead could be a promising direction for the project.