Amino acid profiles in relation to chronic periodontitis and rheumatoid arthritis

Chronic periodontitis (CP) and rheumatoid arthritis (RA) are chronic inflammatory conditions, and share many pathologic features. Plasma amino acid profiles have been shown to be associated with RA, but their relevance to CP remains unclear. The aim of the present study is to evaluate amino acid profiles in relation to CP and RA. The study participants consisted of 62 patients with RA (RA group), 30 patients with CP (CP group) and 29 healthy controls (H group) in age-, gender-, smoking status-balanced condition. Clinical periodontal and rheumatologic parameter values and plasma levels of 21 amino acids, C-reactive protein (CRP), interleukin-6 (IL-6), and tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α) were determined. Multiple comparison analyses revealed that the RA group exhibited similar periodontal conditions but significantly higher levels of CRP, IL-6, and TNF-α than the CP group (P < 0.01). A total of four amino acids (glycine, histidine, ornithine, and alpha-aminobutyric acid) were significantly different in the concentrations among the three groups (P < 0.01). The RA group displayed significantly lower levels of glycine and histidine and significantly higher ornithine level than the CP and H groups (P < 0.01). The CP group showed significantly higher alpha-aminobutyric acid level than the RA and H groups (P < 0.01). Of these four amino acids, a significantly positive correlation was found between ornithine level and % of sites with bleeding on probing (P = 0.006) in the RA group. These results suggest a possibility that profiles of four amino acids may play a role in the pathogenesis of CP and RA.

A Comparable Study of Combinational Regenerative Therapies Comprising Enamel Matrix Derivative plus Deproteinized Bovine Bone Mineral with or without Collagen Membrane in Periodontitis Patients with Intrabony Defects

Aim: The aim of the present study was to examine the effectiveness of collagen membrane (CM) in regenerative therapy with deproteinized bovine bone mineral (DBBM) and enamel matrix derivative (EMD) for periodontal intrabony defects. Methods: Eighteen periodontal intrabony defects of nine chronic periodontitis patients were evaluated. Two defects per patient with probing pocket depth (PPD) ≥ 6 mm were assigned to two different types of treatments: EMD + DBBM + CM or EMD + DBBM. Clinical parameters including Gingival Index (GI), PPD, clinical attachment level (CAL), gingival recession (GR), bleeding on probing (BOP), tooth mobility (MOB), and the filled bone volume/rate (FBV/FBR), which was measured by cone beam computed tomography, were compared at baseline and 12 months post-treatment. Differences between groups were determined by the chisquare test, McNemar’s test, and Wilcoxon signed-rank test. Results: Clinically, PPD, CAL, and FBR significantly improved in both groups (p Conclusion: Periodontal regenerative therapies comprising EMD and DBBM with and without CM resulted in positive clinical outcomes. The use of CM may result in better outcomes in MOB decrease;however, long-term prognosis must be further studied.

Changes in Biomarkers after Initial Periodontal Treatment in Gingival Crevicular Fluid from Patients with Chronic Periodontitis Presenting with Drug-Induced Gingival Overgrowth

Calcium channel blocker-induced gingival overgrowth (CCB-GO) is increasing in elderly patients who have been prescribed medication for hypertension for years. The purpose of the present study was to analyze the comprehensive protein expression levels of candidate biomarkers in gingival crevicular fluid (GCF) from CCB-GO patients. Eleven GO patients (10 males and one female, mean ± SD: age: 64.4 ± 14.0 years) who had been systemically prescribed CCBs, either amlodipine or nifedipine, for hypertension for at least 12 months were recruited. Before (baseline) and 4 weeks after initial periodontal treatments, subgingival plaque and GCF samples were taken from two sites per patient: sites affected by CCB-GO and chronic periodontitis. Measurement of clinical parameters and quantitative analysis of periodontopathic bacteria using real-time PCR were performed. Biomarkers/cytokines in GCF were examined using multiplex bead immunoassays. The Mann-Whitney U test was used to compare the collected data between groups. The correlations between pairs of biomarkers were assessed using the Spearman correlation relationship. Levels of two of the 14 biomarkers, interleukin (IL)-1β and transforming growth factor (TGF)- β, were significantly decreased in CCB-GO sites after initial periodontal therapy. The intragroup comparison at baseline showed that counts of Treponema denticola in the GO group were significantly higher than those in the chronic periodontitis group (P β and TGF-β in CCB-GO patients. These factors are involved in initiation and progression of GO as well as periodontitis.

The change of HERS cell number and gene expression profile by occlusion during root development in rat molars

Occlusion is commenced by contact of a tooth with an opposing tooth and is the mechanical force working against the periodontal ligament (PDL). Our recent study indicated that occlusion regulated tooth root elongation occurs during root development in rat molars. Using a non-occlusal model established to directly examine the effects of the absence of occlusion in developing first molars of upper jaw, histological analysis was performed to count the number of HERS cells, with Microarray used to analyse gene expression profiles. HERS cell numbers in normal molars decreased significantly more than those in experimental molars. In microarray data, a total of 59 genes showed significant differences (fold change > 2.0). Expressions of 55 genes in the experimental molars, which included PLAP-1/asporin and periostin, were significantly decreased than those in normal molars. These data indicate that occlusion during root development leads to a decrease in the number of HERS cells, and that the aforementioned genes may play an essential role in normal root formation.

The comparative effectiveness of granules or blocks of superporous hydroxyapatite for the treatment of intrabony periodontal defects

The aim of the present controlled clinical study was to compare the clinical response of grafting superporous hydroxyapatite (HAp) granules to superporous HAp blocks in the treatment of human intrabony periodontal defects. Twenty interproximal intrabony os-seous defects in 20 healthy, non-smoking subjects diagnosed with chronic periodontitis were included in this study. These twenty subjects were randomly assigned to either the HAp granule or the HAp block groups. Clinical and radiographic measurements were determined at baseline, 3, 6, 9 and 12-month post-surgical evaluation time periods. When compared to baseline, the 12-month results indicated both treatment procedures resulted in statistically significant favorable changes in probing depth (mean value: 3.5 mm versus 3.5 mm), clinical attachment level gain (3.2 mm versus 2.3 mm) and radiographic infrabony defect depth decrease (2.9 mm versus 2.5 mm) for HAp granule and HAp block grafting respectively. At 3- and 6-months, the granule group, when compared to the block group, exhibited a statistically significantly more favorable clinical response in clinical attachment level (4.1 mm versus 5.9 mm, p < 0.05 at 3-months;4.3 mm versus 6.5 mm, p < 0.01 at 6- months). The present study demonstrated that both grafting of superporous HAp granules and grafting of HAp blocks were similarly successful in the treatment of human intrabony periodontal defects.

Upregulated genes in toll-like receptor (TLR) signaling pathway in periodontitis-affected gingival tissues

Toll-like receptor (TLR) signaling is thought to be one of the most important pathways initiating periodontitis onset. We have previously reported that the TLR signaling pathway is upregulated in periodontitis-affected gingival tissues by microarray pathway frequency analysis. The aim of the present study was to quantitatively analyze specific upregulated genes in the TLR signaling pathway, as compared to healthy controls. Healthy and periodontitis-affected gingival tissues were taken from distinct sites of 3 patients with severe chronic periodontitis. Total RNAs from 6 gingival tissue samples were used for microarray. Samples were taken from 14 chronic periodontitis patients and 14 healthy individuals for quantitative reverse transcription real-time polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR) analysis. Data-mining analyses, such as pathway analyses, were performed and significant biological pathways in periodontitis were identified. In addition, qRT-PCR analysis was performed for 5 genes—cluster of differentiation 14 (CD14), lymphocyte antigen 96 (MD-2), interleukin-1 beta (IL-1β), interleukin 8 (IL-8), and chemokine ligand 9 (CXCL-9), which are associated with TLR signaling, in order to confirm the results of pathway analysis. qRT-PCR verified that the transcripts for 5 genes in the TLR signaling pathway were significantly upregulated (MD-2 p = 0.0082, CD14 p = 0.0322, IL-1β p = 0.0126, IL-8 p = 0.0438, CXCL-9 p = 0.0325), which was consistent with pathway analyses. We confirmed upregulated MD-2 gene expression levels and associated TLR pathway gene expression, including CD14, IL-1β, IL-8 and CXCL-9, in periodontitis-affected gingival tissues, as compared with healthy controls.