ARS | Publication request: BONE HEALING UNDER A SILICON-DEFICIENT DIET: A HISTOMORPHOMETRIC STUDY IN RATS

Submitted to: Annual Meeting of the International Association for Dental Research
Publication Type: Abstract Only
Publication Acceptance Date: January 1, 2005
Publication Date: March 9, 2005
Citation: Guglielmotti, M.B., Gorustovich, A., Krieger, L., Renou, S.J., Giglio, M.J., Nielsen, F.H. 2005. Bone healing under a silicon-deficient diet: a histomorphometric study in rats [abstract]. Presented at the Annual Meeting of the International Association for Dental Research, Baltimore, MD. March 9 - 12, 2005. Journal Dental Research 84(Spec Iss A):abstract 2157.

Technical Abstract: Emerging evidence suggests that silicon (Si) has a biochemical function that affects bone formation and turnover. Objective: To perform a histomorphometric study of the effect of low dietary Si on alveolar bone healing after tooth extraction in the rat. Methods: Under anesthesia, the first lower molars of male Wistar rats weighing on average 80 - 110 g were extracted (Guglielmotti and Cabrini, J Oral Maxillofac Surg 1985; 43:359-364). The animals were assigned to receive one of two dietary treatments that consisted of a basal silicon-deficient diet (2 mg Si/kg) (n: 8), and a basal diet supplemented with 35 mg/kg diet (n: 7). The composition of the basal diet has been reported previously (Seaborn and Nielsen, Biol Trace Element Res 1994; 42:151-164). Animals were fed their respective diets for 30 days after surgery. Fresh food and deionized water in plastic cups were provided ad libitum each day. Body weight (b.w.) and food intake (F.I) were determined. The animals were killed by ether overdose. Bucco-lingually oriented sections were obtained at the level of the mesial socket, and stained with H-E. The volume density of bone in the apical third of the socket was determined. Results: Histomorphometric evaluation showed a 33% reduction in bone tissue density in rats fed a Si-deficient diet compared to animals fed an adequate silicon diet. Conclusions: In this experimental model, a silicon-deficient diet leads to altered bone healing as observed by a marked reduction in osteogenesis. The present study reveals the importance of dietary silicon in bone formation.