Interleukin-8 and granulocyte elastase in gingival crevicular fluid in relation to periodontopathogens in untreated adult periodontitis.

BACKGROUND

This study aimed to determine the relationships among interleukin (IL)-8 and granulocyte elastase levels in gingival crevicular fluid (GCF) and the concomitant presence of periodontopathogens in untreated adult periodontitis.

METHODS

GCF and subgingival plaque samples were collected from 16 patients with untreated adult periodontitis and 10 healthy control subjects. IL-8 levels were determined by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). Granulocyte elastase was analyzed with a neutrophilic granulocyte-specific, low molecular weight and chromogenic substrate, L-pyroglutamyl-L-prolyl-L-valine-p-nitroanilide, and the maximal rate of elastase activity (MR-EA) was calculated. Five DNA probes were used to detect the presence of A. actinomycetemcomitans (A.a.), B. forsythus (B.f.), P. gingivalis (P.g.), P. intermedia (P.i.), and T. denticola (T.d.).

RESULTS

Lower IL-8 concentrations and higher granulocyte elastase activities were found in patients than in healthy controls as well as in diseased conditions co-infected with B.f., P.g., P.i., and T.d. as compared to healthy conditions without the target species (P <0.05). IL-8 concentrations were positively correlated with MR-EA levels in the periodontitis conditions co-infected with B.f., P.g., P.i., and T.d. (P <0.05). A wide range of IL-8 concentrations was found among 15 patients when the periodontitis condition was characterized by co-infection with B.f., P.g., P.i., and T.d. MR-EA levels in the high IL-8 group of subjects were significantly higher than those in the low IL-8 group of subjects (P <0.01).

CONCLUSIONS

The present study shows that the local host-bacteria interactions in untreated periodontitis are diverse in terms of the intensity of inflammatory responses measured by IL-8-related granulocyte elastase activity in GCF. This might reflect different phases of the inflammatory response due to shifts in host-bacteria interactions and therefore be indicative of a range of periodontal disease activity levels.