Effect of electron-beam irradiation on antimicrobial, antibiofilm activity, and cytotoxicity of mouth rinses

Background: Oral health diseases are common in all regions of the world. Mouth rinses are widely used generally by population as a port of daily oral care regimen. In addition to antimicrobial activity, mouth rinses possess certain cytotoxic effects. Electron-beam (E-beam) radiation is a form of ionizing energy known to induce structural, physical, and chemical changes in irradiated products. In this study, the modulatory effects of E-beam in irradiated mouth rinses were evaluated for its biological activities. Materials and Methods: The antimicrobial activities of nonirradiated and irradiated mouth rinses were evaluated for its antimicrobial and antibiofilm activities against oral pathogens, Enterococcus faecalis, Streptococcus mutans, Staphylococcus aureus, and Candida albicans. The antimicrobial activity was evaluated by disc diffusion method and antibiofilm activity was evaluated by O'Toole method. The cytotoxicity was evaluated against human gingival fibroblast (HGF) cells by 3-(4, 5 Dimethythiazol-yl)-2,5-Diphenyl-tetrazolium bromide assay. Results: Colgate Plax (CP) exhibited the antimicrobial activity against the tested pathogens, and a significant (P< 0.05) increase was observed against S. aureus at 750 Gy irradiation. Further, CP significantly (P< 0.05) suppressed S. mutans, S. aureus, and C. albicans biofilm. Listerine (LS) inhibited S. mutans and C. albicans biofilm. Whereas irradiated CP and LS significantly (P< 0.05) suppressed the biofilm formed by oral pathogens. The suppression of biofilm by irradiated mouth rinses was dose- and species-dependent. There was no significant (P > 0.05) difference in the cytotoxicity of irradiated and nonirradiated mouth rinses on HGF cells. However, an increased percentage viability of HGF cells was observed by mouth rinses irradiated at 750 Gy.xs Conclusion: The E-beam irradiation enhanced the antibiofilm activity of mouth rinses without modifying the cytotoxicity.