Quantitative analysis of the viscoelastic properties of thin regions of fibroblasts using atomic force microscopy.
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Viscoelasticity of the leading edge, i.e., the lamellipodium, of a cell is the key property for a deeper understanding of the active extension of a cell's leading edge. The fact that the lamellipodium of a cell is very thin (<1000 nm) imparts special challenges for accurate measurements of its viscoelastic behavior. It requires addressing strong substrate effects and comparatively high stresses (>1 kPa) on thin samples. We present the method for an atomic force microscopy-based microrheology that allows us to fully quantify the viscoelastic constants (elastic storage modulus, viscous loss modulus, and the Poisson ratio) of thin areas of a cell (<1000 nm) as well as those of thick areas. We account for substrate effects by applying two different models-a model for well-adhered regions (Chen model) and a model for nonadhered regions (Tu model). This method also provides detailed information about the adhered regions of a cell. The very thin regions relatively near the edge of NIH 3T3 fibroblasts can be identified by the Chen model as strongly adherent with an elastic strength of approximately 1.6 +/- 0.2 kPa and with an experimentally determined Poisson ratio of approximately 0.4 to 0.5. Further from the edge of these cells, the adherence decreases, and the Tu model is effective in evaluating its elastic strength ( approximately 0.6 +/- 0.1 kPa). Thus, our AFM-based microrheology allows us to correlate two key parameters of cell motility by relating elastic strength and the Poisson ratio to the adhesive state of a cell. This frequency-dependent measurement allows for the decomposition of the elastic modulus into loss and storage modulus. Applying this decomposition and Tu's and Chen's finite depth models allow us to obtain viscoelastic signatures in a frequency range from 50 to 300 Hz, showing a rubber plateau-like behavior. (+info)
Abrasive effect of brushing on ormocers following acid conditioning.
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The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effect of toothbrushing on the surface roughness and microhardness of Admira and Definite following acid conditioning. Half of the samples were either used as controls or brushed for 10 minutes using an electric toothbrush with slurry. The remaining specimens were stored in orthophosphoric acid with a pH of 1.9 for 24 hours and then half were brushed. The surface roughness of Admira and Definite was not significantly affected by storage under acidic conditions. However, the specimens of both materials in the control groups and the ones tested after acidic storage were found to be significantly smoother than the specimens subjected to toothbrushing alone and brushing following acid conditioning. For both materials, significantly higher values of microhardness were obtained after toothbrushing following acid conditioning than toothbrushing alone. Therefore, brushing following acid conditioning significantly affects the surfaces of the ormocers. (+info)
Evaluation of brittleness of porcelain fused to pure titanium by fracture toughness, hardness and fracture energy.
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To elucidate the cause of brittleness of porcelain fused to pure titanium (PFPT) which leads to chipping and cracking similar to that of conventional porcelain in clinical use, fracture toughness KIc, hardness (Hv and Hk) and fracture energy gamma reflecting the bonding energy of atoms were evaluated. In KIc there were no differences between PFPT and conventional porcelain, nor for Hv and Hk, but for the gamma of PFPT calculated from the KIc and the Young modulus measured by the resonance method there was less than that of conventional porcelain. These results indicate that mechanical properties such as KIc and hardness cannot always substantiate the brittleness of PFPT experienced in practical use. However, a comparatively small gamma of PFPT may suggest a fatigue crack growth as a more likely phenomenon as it occurs more easily than the conventional one in oral. (+info)
Metallurgical effects on titanium by laser welding on dental stone.
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It is not known for certain that dental stone components influence titanium welding. In this study, we investigated metallurgical problems caused by laser welding on dental stones using wrought commercial pure (CP) titanium. A pulsed Nd:YAG laser irradiated a number of specimens' surfaces which were fixed on either a dental hard stone or a titanium plate. The metallurgical properties of the weld were evaluated using the Vickers hardness test, microstructure observation, fractured surface observation and quantitative analysis of oxygen and hydrogen. In the weld formed on the dental stone there was an increase in hardness, the existence of an acicular structure and a brittle fractured surface, and an increase in the oxygen and hydrogen concentrations compared with base metal. In the weld formed on the titanium plate, these changes were not observed. Therefore, it was demonstrated that laser welding on dental stones made the welds brittle. (+info)
Effect of eugenol and non-eugenol containing temporary cement on permanent cement retention and microhardness of cured composite resin.
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This present study had three aims: 1) to evaluate the bond strengths of carboxylate and resin cements in cementing cast Co-Cr crowns to pretreatment of composite resin cores with eugenol and non-eugenol containing temporary cements, 2) to determine the microhardness of composite resin treated with temporary cement, 3) to view the surface differences of composite resin with SEM. The composite cores were divided into three experimental groups for the following pretreatments: Group 1, No treatment was provided, Group 2, The external walls of the composite cores were covered with eugenol-containing temporary cement, Group 3, The external walls of the composite cores were covered with non-eugenol containing temporary cement. Analysis of variance results showed that there was a significant difference between all three groups. Temporary cement with eugenol was significantly reduced the bond strength of full crown casting with resin cement compared with non-eugenol. The resin specimens treated with the eugenol-containing temporary cement showed the lowest microhardness values, the non-eugenol-containing temporary cement was not significantly different from those of the control groups. (+info)
The effect of "soft-start polymerization" on surface hardness of two packable composites.
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It has been reported that light-initiated prepolymerization at low intensity followed by a post-light-cure at full intensity (soft-start polymerization) may lead to light-cured composite fillings with improved marginal integrity. The aim of this study was to examine the influence of softstart polymerization with different protocols on Vickers hardness of different packable composites. Vickers hardness of packable composites ALERT, and Definite were measured with a Vickers indenter and were evaluated. The results suggested that independent of the applied curing mode and curing tip, Alert showed significantly higher Vickers hardness than did Definite (p<0.05). There was no significant influence of curing mode or light guide on Vickers hardness of the samples tested. In conclusion, we found that soft-start polymerization does not have a significant influence on the degree of conversion, when compared with the conventional method. In addition, different light tips showed no significant improvement on surface hardness. (+info)
Hardening of dual-cure resin cements and a resin composite restorative cured with QTH and LED curing units.
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OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to determine the effects of light intensity and type of light unit (quartztungsten-halogen [QTH] or light-emitting diode [LED]) on the hardening of various resin cements and a resin composite restorative. METHODS: Disk specimens were prepared from 4 dual-cured resin cements (Variolink II, Calibra, Nexus 2 and RelyX ARC). Two QTH light-curing units (Visilux 2, at 550 mW/cm2, and Optilux 501, at 1,360 mW/cm2) and a LED unit (Elipar FreeLight, at 320 mW/cm2) were used for curing. Specimens were light-cured or dual-cured for 10, 30 or 40 seconds with 1 of the 3 light units (curing applied to upper surface only) and were tested 24 hours after curing. Additional cement specimens were self-cured and tested at 15, 30 and 60 minutes and at 24 hours. Testing consisted of measurement of Knoop hardness number (KHN) for each specimen. Six KHN values were obtained for the upper surface only of the various cement specimens in each test group. Disk specimens 2.5 mm thick were also prepared from a resin composite restorative (XRV Herculite). These were light-cured as above, and KHN measurements were obtained for both the upper and the lower surfaces. Mean KHNs were determined, and data were analyzed with analysis of variance. RESULTS: The groups were significantly different (p < 0.05). High-intensity light curing resulted in the highest KHN values for all materials with any of the 3 light-curing times. For the cements, LED light curing (with both dual-curing and light-curing modes) resulted in hardness values similar to those achieved with conventional QTH light curing, although there were some exceptions. However, both LED and conventional QTH light curing resulted in inferior hardening of lower surfaces of the XRV Herculite specimens at the 3 curing times. For all cements except Nexus 2, self-curing resulted in significantly lower hardness values than dual curing. The self-curing mechanism of Variolink II cement needed a longer time to activate than those of the other cements. CONCLUSIONS: High-intensity light curing and longer curing times resulted in the highest KHNs. The LED curing unit was associated with the lowest hardness values for lower surfaces of the resin composite restorative. (+info)
Electronic structure of brain: structure-activity relationships between electronic structure and neurotransmitters based on molecular hardness concept.
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In order to understand the relation between the electronic structure of neurotransmitters and the brain, a model of the brain based on absolute hardness (eta) and absolute electronegativity (chi) is described. It was found that the coordinate r(chi, eta) of electronic structures of neurotransmitters obtained using the parameters eta and chi can be graphically classified into three groups: catecholamine type (group I), gamma-aminobutanoic acid (GABA) type (group II), and acetylcholine (ACh) type (group III) in the eta-chi diagram. The results suggest that the brainstem and neocortex in the brain are chemically soft and hard, respectively, because they show that the myelinated nerve is chemically soft and the unmyelinated nerve is chemically hard. If one calculates the r(chi, eta) to understand which group a drug belongs to, one can predict the target receptors of the drug from the eta-chi diagram. Using eta-chi maps, one is then able to design medications like antidepressants, tranquilizers, and ACh agonists. (+info)