Evidence for local production of antibodies to auto and non-self antigens in periodontal disease.

Unlabelled: Autoimmune mechanisms may contribute to periodontal disease (PD) pathogenesis; autoantibody to collagen type 1 is produced at the periodontal site and local levels are found to be higher than in serum.

Objectives: To find any evidence of autoimmune destruction in diseased periodontal tissues in patients with periodontitis. The study examines the relationship of antibodies to a self antigen collagen Type 1 and antigens from two periodontal pathogens namely Porphyromonas gingivalis (Pg), Actinobacillus actinomycetemcomitans (Aa) and a non-oral bacterium Bacteroides fragilis (Bf) in disease sites and in serum.

Benefits to satellite members in mixed-species foraging groups: an experimental analysis.

Hypotheses proposed to explain the formation of mixed-species foraging groups have focused on both foraging and antipredation benefits. Mixed-species flocks of bark-foraging birds form during the winter in the eastern deciduous forests of North America. These flocks are composed of two parid nuclear species, tufted titmice, Baeolophus bicolor, and either Carolina or black-capped chickadees, Poecile carolinensis or P.

The use of irradiated-crosslinked human collagen membrane in guided tissue regeneration.

Irradiated glutaraldehyde-crosslinked human collagen membrane was evaluated for its effects on new attachment formation in clinical trials, using the principle of guided tissue regeneration (GTR). 19 adult periodontitis patients with 52 matched bilateral periodontal defects received scaling and polishing with oral hygiene instruction. The bilateral periodontal defects were treated by reflecting a flap with collagen membrane (test) or flap reflection alone (control).

Immunity to self-antigens in periodontal disease.

Auto-antibody to collagen, previously detected in periodontal disease, may represent either a response to local tissue damage or be the manifestation of a disturbance of the host immune response induced by the periodontal flora and its products. In an effort to distinguish between these two hypotheses, this study was undertaken to determine circulating IgG auto-antibody levels in 41 periodontal-disease patients against 12 self-antigens (salmon DS-DNA, calf SS-DNA, human and bovine thyroglobulin, rabbit proteoglycan, horse myoglobin, bovine myosin, actin, fetuin, human transferrin, cytochrome C, and human Type I collagen) and compare them to those in 21 periodontal disease-free subjects. None of the detected IgG auto-antibody levels were significantly different between periodontal disease and control sera (Mann-Whitney U-test, P greater than 0.

Freeze-dried, cross-linked bovine type I collagen: analysis of properties.

This study was undertaken to assess the physical and biological properties of freeze-dried cross-linked bovine type I collagen and to assess its potential for use in the guided tissue regeneration method of treatment of periodontal disease in human adult subjects. The modulus of elasticity, swelling ratio, and biodegradation rate were investigated. The collagen sponge was implanted subdermally into Sprague-Dawley rats and a histological study carried out at 2, 7, 21, 35, and 49 days post implantation.