In vitro assessment of biocompatibility of biomaterials by using fluorescent yeast biosensor

For genotoxicity test, a multicopy plasmid bearing a RAD54 promoter fused to GFP was used as a sensing part of yeast cells. The monomers of dental resin (HEMA, TEGDMA and UDMA) were tested for their mutagenicity. Among the monomers, TEGDMA exhibited the increase of fluorescence. This result indicates that the test with yeast may produce the scores of genotoxicity closer to those obtained with mammalian cells rather than bacteria. In conclusion, this study showed the usefulness of yeast cells for in vitro biocompatibility test of biomaterials.