Evaluation of Antimicrobial Efficacy and Osteogenic Potential of Titanium Coated with Hydrogel of Calendula officinalis: An in Vitro Study.

Introduction: Implant failures could be due to peri-implantitis, and others are related to inadequate bone-to-implant contact eventually causing mobility and implant loss. Although many surface coatings have been proposed and commercially available drugs are used to treat the biofilm, there have been a lot of shortfalls, and the focus has now shifted toward biogenic agents. Hence, this in vitro study was undertaken with the intent to assess the antimicrobial efficacy and osteogenic potential of calendula officinalis hydrogel when coated on titanium.

Materials and methods: A total of 270 titanium discs (10 mm × 2 mm American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM) B348) were included in the study, and their surface topography was characterized. Minimum inhibitory concentration, minimum bactericidal concentration, and cytotoxicity were established, and C. officinalis hydrogel was prepared. Antimicrobial efficacy was tested against Porphyromonas gingivalis, Aggregatibacter actinomycetemcomitans, and Staphylococcus aureus of the C. officinalis hydrogel coated on titanium discs compared to chlorhexidine gel. The osteogenic potential of the gel was evaluated by assessing the cell attachment using a hemocytometer and cell proliferation using MTT assay on MG-63 cell lines at three different time intervals of 24, 48, and 72 h.

Results: C. officinalis hydrogel coated on titanium discs showed antimicrobial efficacy against the tested microorganisms; however, it was less than chlorhexidine gel. The cell attachment and cell proliferation were statistically highly significant (P = 0.001*, *signifies result is significant) compared to the machined titanium surfaces with an effect size of 59%.

Conclusion: C. officinalis-treated titanium surfaces had a positive effect on the cellular events of MG-63 cells as well as it showed antimicrobial efficacy against the predominant peri-implant pathogens which would prevent early peri-implantitis and help in the process of osseointegration.