The purpose of this study was to determine the @entity174 toughness (K(IC)) of @entity1 dentin and to test the null hypothesis that K(IC) is not affected by the orientation of dentinal tubules relative to the plane of crack propagation. Triangular prisms (4 x 4 x 4 x 8 mm) were obtained from @entity1 molars and tested using the notchless triangular prism (NTP) specimen K(IC) test. Dentin prisms were prepared so that the plane of crack propagation would have three different orientations relative to the orientation of dentinal tubules: perpendicular (PE), parallel aligned ( @entity3880 ), and @entity8967 ( @entity8967 ). The prepared specimens were secured in the specimen holder and loaded in tension until @entity174 or @entity1167 . The maximum load recorded was used to calculate K(IC). There was no significant difference between the K(IC) of @entity3880 specimens (1.97 +/- 0.17 MPa/m(1/2)) and @entity8967 (2.02 +/- 0.18 MPa/m(1/2)). The K(IC) for the PE specimens (1.13 +/- 0.36 MPa/m(1/2)) was significantly lower. The SEM images of the fractured surfaces showed distinct differences that were correlated with the determined K(IC) values. The fractured surfaces of @entity3880 and @entity8967 specimens were rougher compared to PE specimens. Both the hyper mineralized peritubular dentin and the orientation of collagen fibrils surrounding the tubules could be responsible for the significant differences in K(IC). The results of this study identified a significant anisotropy of dentin with respect to its K(IC).

Fracture toughness of XXXX dentin.

@entity1 :: ('9606', 'Species') :: ['human'] @entity8967 :: ('MESH:C537446', 'Disease') :: ['parallel transverse', 'PAT'] @entity174 :: ('MESH:D050723', 'Disease') :: ['fracture'] @entity3880 :: ('CHEBI:51133', 'Chemical') :: ['PAA'] @entity1167 :: ('MESH:D006323', 'Disease') :: ['crack arrest']
@entity1 :: (9606,Species) :: ['human']
