Porphyromonas gingivalis HmuY-induced production of interleukin-6 and IL-6 polymorphism in chronic periodontitis.

Background: In chronic periodontitis (CP), the gene polymorphism of interleukin-6 (IL-6) to 174C/G has been associated with the altered production of this cytokine. The aim of this pilot study is to compare the allelic and genotypic frequencies in patients with CP with control individuals without periodontitis (NP) and to measure the production of IL-6 by whole blood cells stimulated with Porphyromonas gingivalis HmuY protein.

Methods: DNA was isolated from peripheral blood cells of 49 patients with CP and 60 control individuals classified as NP, and genotyping was performed by polymerase chain reaction using sequence-specific primers.

Porphyromonas gingivalis antigens differently participate in the proliferation and cell death of human PBMC.

Objective: Modulation of cell-mediated immunity by microorganisms in periodontal diseases has been widely studied; however, the proliferative activity and/or programmed death of mononuclear cells under periodontopathogenic stimuli are not yet well understood. The aim of this study was to investigate in vitro proliferation and death of peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) upon stimulation with Porphyromonas gingivalis (Pg) antigens.

Design: In 19 patients with chronic periodontitis (CP) and 16 controls without periodontitis (NP) the following clinical parameters were evaluated: bleeding on probing, probing depth, and clinical attachment level.