CYTOTOXICITY TESTING OF CYANOACRYLATES USING DIRECT-CONTACT ASSAY ON CELL-CULTURES

The use of a tissue adhesive for surgical procedures has prompted a la rge number of clinical and experimental studies. Alkyl-2-cyanoacrylate esters constitute a family of adhesives with good mechanical properti es but their biological compatibility has to be assessed. In this stud y the cytotoxicity of three commercially available cyanoacrylates and one of unknown composition has been determined. The first part of the study deals with direct contact testing procedures using L 929 cells c hallenged with drops of adhesives: cell morphology, cell growth and ba cterial growth inhibition were assayed. Testing methods included cell viability assay using vital dyes, cell growth measurement using crysta l violet staining uptake and bacterial growth assay using S. aureus gr owth inhibition. All the cyanoacrylate adhesives tested were found to be cytotoxic and to inhibit cell proliferation: differences between th e cyanoacrylates were found.