Hydrophilic surface modification of acrylic denture base material by silica coating and its influence on Candida albicans adherence.

Silica coating modifies hydrophobic denture base materials to have a hydrophilic surface. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effect of silica coating to a denture base material on resistance to Candida albicans (C. albicans) adherence. Specimens were prepared by polymerizing an acrylic denture lining material and polished using silicon carbide paper up an abrasive grade of 1000. The specimens of a coated group were treated three times by a silica coating agent using a nonwoven cloth. The surface properties were evaluated by contact angle measurement, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS). A C. albicans adherence assay was performed after 1.5, 6, and 24 h incubation. The mean contact angle of the coated group showed significantly lower than that of the non-coated group (p < 0.05). In the coated group, the surface roughness decreased in SEM images, and Si was continuously detected in EDS analysis. At 24 h incubation time, the colony forming unit of C. albicans on the coated group was significantly reduced compared to the non-coated group (p < 0.05). These results suggest that hydrophilic surface modification by the silica coating reduces C. albicans adherence and could contribute to daily denture care.