Characterization of calcium oxide in root perforation sealer materials

Root perforation represents an undesirable complication that may lead to an unfavorable prognosis. The aims of this study were to characterize and to compare the presence of calcium oxide (CaO) on the chemical composition of materials used for root perforation therapy: gray and white mineral trioxide aggregate (MTA) and Portland cement (PC), gray MTA+5%CaO and gray MTA+10%CaO. The last two materials were analyzed to evaluate the increase of CaO in the final sample. CaO alone was used as a standard. Eighteen polyethylene tubes with an internal diameter of 3 mm and 3 mm in length were prepared, filled and then transferred to a chamber with 95% relative humidity and a temperature of 37ºC. The chemical compounds (particularly CaO) and the main components were analyzed by energy-dispersive X-ray microanalysis (EDX). EDX revealed the following concentrations of CaO: gray MTA: 59.28%, white MTA: 63.09%; PC: 72.51%; gray MTA+5%CaO: 63.48% and gray MTA+10%CaO: 67.55%. The tested materials presented different concentrations of CaO. Even with an increase of 5 and 10% CaO in gray MTA, the CaO levels found in the MTA samples were lower than those found in PC.

Bromatological characteristics and in vitro digestibility of four sugarcane varieties subjected or not to the application of quicklime

The experiment was conducted to evaluate the bromatological characteristics and the in vitro digestibility of four sugarcane varieties, subjected or not to hydrolysis, with quicklime. A completely randomized design was employed with three replications arranged in a 4 × 2 factorial scheme, with four sugarcane varieties (SP 52454, RB 867515, RB 855536 and IAC 862480), hydrolyzed or not. There was significant effect on brix (p < 0.05) and industrial fiber (p < 0.05), and IAC 862480 variety had the lowest levels of industrial fiber. There were no significant difference (p > 0.05) in neutral detergent fiber, acid detergent fiber and lignin levels among the sugarcane varieties under analysis and for the sugarcanes, hydrolyzed or not. The use of sugarcane hydrolysis with 1% quicklime improves the in vitro digestibility of NDF and ADF, regardless of the variety studied. Hydrolysis with 1% quicklime did not alter the sugarcane chemical composition.