Isfahan University of Medical SciencesDental Research Journal1735-33279120120218Comparison of cell viability and morphology of a human osteoblastlike cell line (SaOS-2) seeded on various bone substitute materials: An in vitro study901901ENNaderAyobian-MarkaziDepartment of Periodontics, Dental Branch, Islamic Azad University, Tehran, Iran. na1344@yahoo.comT.FourootanM. J.Kharazifar20120218Background: Many studies have shown favorable results following the use of different bone graftmaterials. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the biocompatibility of four different bonegraft materials regarding cell viability and morphology of Human osteoblast-like cells (SaOS-2) in vitro.Materials and Methods: The effects of Bio-Oss®, Tutodent®, Osteon®, and Cerasorb® werestudied on the human osteoblast-like cell line to evaluate various parameters. Human osteoblastlikecells were seeded onto the mentioned bone substitute materials (BSMs). Cell differentiation;cell viability and alkaline phosphatase (ALP) activity of the seeded cells were evaluated by means ofscanning electron microscopy, cell viability test and phase contrast microscopy Analysis of variance(ANOVA). Tamhane´s post-hoc, Kruskal-Wallis Test, and Dunn’s Test were used. The results wereconsidered to be statistically significant at P<0.05.Results: The control group (SaOS-2 cells which were incubated in Dulbecco Modified Eagle Mediumwithout any kind of bone graft materials) had the highest level of cell viability (P<0.001), followedby Tutodent®, Osteon®, Cerasorb®, and Bio-Oss®. There was no significant difference in MTT assayresults between Tutodent® and the control group (P=0.032). All tested bone graft materials showedsignificantly higher ALP activity than the control (P<0.001). The Tutodent® group showed the bestcell growth among all experimental groups, followed by the Osteon® group. The former had a higherspindle-like morphology with good attachment to the surface. Cells cultivated on the surfaces ofthe Cerasorb® and Bio-Oss® granules had more round morphologies.Conclusion: This in vitro study demonstrated that all tested BSMs can provide good celldifferentiation but a lower rate of proliferation.Key Words: Alkaline phosphatase, bone graft, cell culture, cell morphology, cell viability, osteoblast