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Abstract BACKGROUND: Soft tissue integration (STI) around dental implant abutments is a prerequisite to prevent bacterial invasion and achieve successful dental implant rehabilitation. However, peri-implant STI is a major challenge after dental abutment placement due to alterations in the immune microenvironment upon surgical dental implant installation. METHODS: Based on known immunomodulatory effects of zinc, we herein deposited zinc/chitosan/gelatin (Zn/CS/Gel) coatings onto titanium substrates to study their effect on macrophages. First, we exposed macrophages to cell culture media containing different zinc ion (Zn 2+ ) concentrations. Next, we explored the immunomodulatory effect of Zn/CS/Gel coatings prepared via facile electrophoretic deposition (EPD). RESULTS: We found that Zn 2+ effectively altered the secretome by reducing the secretion of pro-inflammatory and enhancing pro-regenerative cytokine secretion, particularly at a Zn 2+ supplementation of approximately 37.5 μM. Zn/CS/Gel coatings released Zn 2+ in a concentration range which effectively stimulated pro-regenerative macrophage polarization as demonstrated by M2 macrophage polarization. Additionally, the impact of these Zn 2+ -exposed macrophages on gingival fibroblasts incubated in conditioned medium showed stimulated adhesion, proliferation, and collagen secretion. CONCLUSION: Our promising results suggest that controlled release of Zn 2+ from Zn/CS/Gel coatings could be applied to immunomodulate peri-implant STI, and to enhance dental implant survival.
Han et al. (Sat,) studied this question.