There have been a number of attemptsto modify the surface of dental implants to improve osseointegration. These modifications include alterations of surface chemistry and roughness. The purpose of this study was to examine the early response of human osteoblast-like cells placed on Ti-6Al-7Nb disks that had a similar grooved surface topography and three different levels of surface roughness (Ra = 0.0374, 0.0911, and 0.2435 µm). Cultures of human osteoblast-like cells revealed no significant difference in initial cell attachment among the various surfaces; however, cell spread was greater on rough surfaces than on glass slides and smoother surfaces. In addition, cell proliferation and Ki-67 expression were increased when cells were cultured on rough surfaces. These results suggest that a greater Ti-6Al-7Nb surface roughness support the initial spread and proliferation of human osteoblast-like cells. Thus, modification of the surface roughness of dental implants might hasten osseointegration. (J Oral Sci 53, 23-30, 2011)

The purpose of this study was to compare the early response of human osteoblast-like cells (SaOS-2) on commercially pure titanium (cpTi) and titanium-6-aluminium-7-niobium (Ti-6Al-7Nb) using glass slide as a control. In terms of cell attachment, no significance was observed when cells were seeded on the materials. However, morphological analysis by scanning electron microscope revealed that cells on Ti-6Al-7Nb showed better spreading after 4 hrs. After 48 hrs, both Western analysis and reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction analyses showed that cells cultured on Ti-6Al-7Nb synthesized a higher amount of fibronectin and osteopontin as compared to cells seeded on cpTi or on glass slide. These results suggest that Ti-6Al-7Nb possess a good potential to support SaOS-2 cells on spreading and fibronectin and osteopontin synthesis, therefore, this material may be one of a candidate material used in implant dentistry.