THE PROTEIN-CONTENT OF DENTAL RUBBER DAMS

Objectives: The purpose of this study was to analyse the protein conte nt of 17 commonly used rubber dams and to determine if they contained known allergenic proteins. Methods: Proteins were eluted with buffer f rom 17 brands of commercially available rubber dams. The quantity of e luted protein was measured and expressed in micrograms in every gram o f rubber. The molecular weights of the individual proteins eluted were then measured after resolution on sodium dodecyl sulphate polyacrylam ide gel electrophoresis (SDS-PAGE) and compared with those of known al lergens. Results: The rubber dams were shown to contain significant am ounts of protein (950-5850 mu g). The subsequent analysis of these pro teins using SDS-PAGE confirmed that some of these proteins were of the same molecular weight as known allergens. Conclusions: The results of this study confirm that all the rubber dams tested contained signific ant amounts of protein. The molecular weights of these proteins corres pond with those of known allergens, and they could, therefore, be a ca use of hypersensitivity reactions to dental rubber darns. (C) 1997 Els evier Science Ltd.