{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,9,9]],"date-time":"2026-09-09T05:11:18Z","timestamp":1788930678910,"version":"build-2803163510"},"reference-count":21,"publisher":"Frontiers Media SA","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2026,9,9]],"date-time":"2026-09-09T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1788912000000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"content-domain":{"domain":["frontiersin.org"],"crossmark-restriction":true},"short-container-title":["Front. Dent. Med."],"abstract":"<jats:sec>\n                    <jats:title>Aim<\/jats:title>\n                    <jats:p>\n                      To evaluate the quantification of\n                      <jats:italic>Enterococcus faecalis<\/jats:italic>\n                      using quantitative polymerase chain reaction (qPCR) and culture techniques following different root canal irrigation protocols in refractory endodontic cases.\n                    <\/jats:p>\n                  <\/jats:sec>\n                  <jats:sec>\n                    <jats:title>Materials and methods<\/jats:title>\n                    <jats:p>\n                      Fifty refractory endodontic cases were randomly allocated into five experimental groups according to the irrigant and activation method used: Group I, saline irrigation; Group II, 5.25% sodium hypochlorite with Passive ultrasonic irrigation; Group III, 5.25% sodium hypochlorite with EndoActivator; Group IV, 2% chlorhexidine with Passive ultrasonic irrigation; and Group V, 2% chlorhexidine with EndoActivator. Microbiological samples were collected before and after disinfection using sterile paper points. Quantification of\n                      <jats:italic>Enterococcus faecalis<\/jats:italic>\n                      was performed using conventional culture techniques and qPCR. Data were analyzed using one-way ANOVA,\n                      <jats:italic>post hoc<\/jats:italic>\n                      Tukey test, and paired t-tests (\n                      <jats:italic>P<\/jats:italic>\n                      \u2009&amp;lt;\u20090.05).\n                    <\/jats:p>\n                  <\/jats:sec>\n                  <jats:sec>\n                    <jats:title>Results<\/jats:title>\n                    <jats:p>\n                      Post-treatment bacterial counts were significantly lower in all experimental groups than in the saline control (\n                      <jats:italic>P<\/jats:italic>\n                      \u2009&amp;lt;\u20090.001). Group II (NaOCl with Passive ultrasonic irrigation) showed the greatest reduction, with mean post-treatment counts of 1.73\u2009\u00d7\u200910\u2075 CFU\/mL by culture and a mean log CFU of 3.56 by qPCR, compared with 408\u2009\u00d7\u200910\u2075 CFU\/mL and 26.54 log CFU, respectively, in the saline control. Both culture and qPCR demonstrated significant reductions in\n                      <jats:italic>E. faecalis<\/jats:italic>\n                      following all active irrigation protocols, with Group II consistently showing the greatest reduction across both detection methods.\n                    <\/jats:p>\n                  <\/jats:sec>\n                  <jats:sec>\n                    <jats:title>Conclusion<\/jats:title>\n                    <jats:p>\n                      5.25% NaOCl activated by Passive ultrasonic irrigation achieved the greatest reduction in\n                      <jats:italic>E. faecalis<\/jats:italic>\n                      across both culture and qPCR assessments.\n                    <\/jats:p>\n                  <\/jats:sec>\n                  <jats:sec>\n                    <jats:title>Clinical significance<\/jats:title>\n                    <jats:p>\n                      Passive ultrasonic activation of sodium hypochlorite may enhance root canal disinfection by significantly reducing\n                      <jats:italic>Enterococcus faecalis<\/jats:italic>\n                      , a microorganism commonly associated with persistent endodontic infections. The use of qPCR provides a sensitive method for evaluating the antimicrobial efficacy of endodontic irrigation protocols.\n                    <\/jats:p>\n                  <\/jats:sec>","DOI":"10.3389\/fdmed.2026.1907257","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2026,9,9]],"date-time":"2026-09-09T04:45:49Z","timestamp":1788929149000},"update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3389\/crossmark-policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":0,"title":["Identification and quantification of Enterococcus faecalis by real-time quantitative pcr during endodontic treatment"],"prefix":"10.3389","volume":"7","author":[{"given":"Shruthi H.","family":"Attavar","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Nitte (Deemed to be University), AB Shetty Memorial Institute of Dental Sciences (ABSMIDS), Department of Conservative Dentistry and Endodontics","place":["Mangalore, 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