Comparative Evaluation of Antifungal Property of Chitosan and Two Different Natural Oils on Heat-cured Denture Base Resins Against Candida albicans: An in vitro Study

Abstract

Background: The concept “prevention is better than cure” goes by the fact with incorporating various nanoparticles as an antimicrobial agent in complete denture fabrication giving the patients an edge of esthetics, function, and longevity with biocompatibility. It gives a particular scope in the prevention and progression of denture stomatitis. Aim: The aim of this study is to determine the most effective antifungal agent against Candida species after incorporating in heat-cured denture base resin (DBR) material specimens. Setting and Design: The total number of 140 samples was fabricated from heat-cured DBR. The samples were further divided into four groups: Group I (samples were incorporated with chitosan), Group II (placed in 120 ml sesame oil for 48 h), Group III (placed in 120 ml sunflower oil for 48 h), and Group IV (samples treated with regular water). After treatment, each acrylic disc was placed in test tubes of 10 ml sterilized Sabouraud dextrose broth and incubated for 24 h, shaken 8 hourly, at 37°C. After incubation, all the tubes containing fungal growth were diluted to 10−4 and then 100 ml amount of specimen was seeded onto Sabouraud dextrose agar medium and incubated for 48 h at 37°C. Materials and Methods: One hundred forty specimens were fabricated from commercially available denture base material (DPI) and were divided as follows: Group I, Group II, Group III, and Group IV, i.e.; thirty-five each. Thirty-five specimens of Group I were incorporated with low-molecular-weight chitosan (LMWC). Thirty-five specimens of Group II were incorporated with sunflower oil. Thirty-five specimens of Group III were incorporated with sesame oil. Thirty-five specimens of Group IV were control. Candida suspension was used to contaminate the specimen. Final colony-forming units (CFU) per milliliter were calculated to evaluate the effectiveness of chitosan, sunflower, and sesame oil. The data were tabulated and statistical analysis was done. Statistical Analysis: The results were compared with one-way analysis of variance and post hoc Tukey’s honestly significant difference test. Results: Group I shows the least amount of Candida colonies followed by Group III, Group II, and Group IV. Conclusion: The study concluded that residual CFUs in LMWC were least as compared to sesame oil and sunflower oil.