International Journal of Molecular Sciences

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Special Issue Editor

Prof. Dr. Jin Chung

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Guest Editor

Department of Oral Microbiology, School of Dentistry, Pusan National University, Yangsan 50612, Republic of Korea
Interests: periodontal pathogenesis; oral microbial ecology

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Periodontitis is the most prevalent chronic inflammatory human disease. If untreated, periodontitis results in periodontal tissue destruction and, eventually, loss of teeth. Moreover, it increases with age and is closely associated with systemic diseases, such as cardiovascular disease, diabetes, and Alzheimer’s disease.

Advances in DNA sequencing have improved our understanding of the relationship between periodontitis and the oral microbiome and have shown that periodontal health is associated with a balanced and diverse oral microbiome. Therefore, when this balance is disrupted, dysbiosis of the oral microbiome occurs, which leads to a detrimental inflammatory response in periodontal tissue. Like other tissues, periodontal tissue is subject to host reactions including both innate immune response such as inflammation and an adaptive immune response to a variety of microorganisms and stimuli, all of which have been implicated in the progression of periodontitis. In particular, chronic inflammation and the release of proinflammatory cytokines are associated with periodontal tissue destruction. In addition, epigenetic modifications that regulate gene expression have also been implicated in periodontitis, where DNA methylation, histone modification, and non-coding RNAs can influence the inflammatory response and tissue destruction in periodontitis. Therefore, a comprehensive understanding of microbial dysbiosis, immune response pathways, and epigenetic mechanisms may provide new targets for the treatment of periodontitis.

Thus, this Special Issue of the International Journal of Molecular Sciences focuses on new insights into periodontitis from biology to treatment including dysbiosis of the oral microbial community, host immune response, and epigenetic mechanism in the development and progression of periodontitis to find out new targets for periodontal treatment. We welcome both original research articles and review papers that deal with the following:

Oral microbiome;
Communication and dysbiosis of oral microbes;
Host response including innate and adaptive immunity in peridontitis; Periodontal inflammatory response;
Regeneration of periodontal tissue;
Gene expression related to periodontitis;
Epigenetic modification including DNA methylation, histone modification, and non-coding RNAs in periodontitis;
Development of new targets for the control of periodontitis;
Treatment of periodontitis.

Prof. Dr. Jin Chung
Guest Editor

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Keywords

periodontitis
microbiome
dysbiosis
host response
inflammation
epigenetics
treatment

Published Papers (2 papers)

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Research

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13 pages, 4951 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Non-Invasive Physical Plasma Reduces the Inflammatory Response in Microbially Prestimulated Human Gingival Fibroblasts

by Benedikt Eggers, Matthias Bernhard Stope, Jana Marciniak, Alexander Mustea, Sigrun Eick, James Deschner, Marjan Nokhbehsaim and Franz-Josef Kramer

Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2023, 24(22), 16156; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms242216156 - 10 Nov 2023

Viewed by 799

Abstract

Non-invasive physical plasma (NIPP), an electrically conductive gas, is playing an increasingly important role in medicine due to its antimicrobial and regenerative properties. However, NIPP is not yet well established in dentistry, although it has promising potential, especially for periodontological applications. The aim of the present study was to investigate the effect of NIPP on a commercially available human gingival fibroblast (HGF) cell line and primary HGFs in the presence of periodontitis-associated bacteria. First, primary HGFs from eight patients were characterised by immunofluorescence, and cell numbers were examined by an automatic cell counter over 5 days. Then, HGFs that were preincubated with Fusobacterium nucleatum (F.n.) were treated with NIPP. Afterwards, the IL-6 and IL-8 levels in the cell supernatants were determined by ELISA. In HGFs, F.n. caused a significant increase in IL-6 and IL-8, and this F.n.-induced upregulation of both cytokines was counteracted by NIPP, suggesting a beneficial effect of physical plasma on periodontal cells in a microbial environment. The application of NIPP in periodontal therapy could therefore represent a novel and promising strategy and deserves further investigation. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue New Insights into Periodontitis: From Biology to Treatment)

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Review

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26 pages, 1807 KiB

Open AccessReview

The Effects of Periodontal Treatment on Rheumatoid Arthritis and of Anti-Rheumatic Drugs on Periodontitis: A Systematic Review

by Francesco Inchingolo, Angelo Michele Inchingolo, Pasquale Avantario, Vito Settanni, Maria Celeste Fatone, Fabio Piras, Daniela Di Venere, Alessio Danilo Inchingolo, Andrea Palermo and Gianna Dipalma

Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2023, 24(24), 17228; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms242417228 - 07 Dec 2023

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1356

Abstract

Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and periodontitis are chronic inflammatory diseases that widely spread and share the same patterns of pro-inflammatory cytokines. This systematic review aims to evaluate the effects of non-surgical periodontal treatment (NSPT) on RA and, conversely, the impact of disease-modifying anti-rheumatic drugs (DMARDs) on periodontitis. PubMed, Embase, and Web of Science were searched using the MESH terms “periodontitis” and “rheumatoid arthritis” from January 2012 to September 2023. A total of 49 articles was included in the final analysis, 10 of which were randomized controlled trials. A total of 31 records concerns the effect of NSPT on parameters of RA disease activity, including a 28-joint disease activity score, anti-citrullinated protein antibodies, rheumatoid factor, C reactive protein, erythrocyte sedimentation rate, pro-inflammatory cytokines and acute phase proteins in serum, saliva, gingival crevicular fluid, and synovial fluid. A total of 18 articles investigated the effect of DMARDs on periodontal indexes and on specific cytokine levels. A quality assessment and risk-of-bias of the studies were also performed. Despite some conflicting results, there is evidence that RA patients and periodontitis patients benefit from NSPT and DMARDs, respectively. The limitations of the studies examined are the small samples and the short follow-up (usually 6 months). Further research is mandatory to evaluate if screening and treatment of periodontitis should be performed systematically in RA patients, and if the administration of DMARDs is useful in reducing the production of cytokines in the periodontium. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue New Insights into Periodontitis: From Biology to Treatment)

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