Doença periodontal em gestantes: expressão gênica de citocinas inflamatórias e óxido nítrico

Abstract

Periodontal disease is one of the most prevalent oral diseases. An association between this disease and pregnancy is suggested, but the available findings are controversial. The objective of this study was to identify and evaluate the expression level of the interleukins (IL-1β and IL-6), tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α), and inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS) in pregnant women with and without periodontal disease in comparison with non-pregnant women with and without periodontal disease. The women in the sample were distributed into four groups: pregnant women with periodontal disease (PrD), pregnant women without periodontal disease (PrND), non-pregnant women with periodontal disease (N-PrD) and non-pregnant women without periodontal disease (N-PrND). The periodontal condition was evaluated according to the probing depth, clinical attachment level and bleeding on probing. The analysis of the genes’ expression was performed by real-time Polymerase Chain Reaction. Comparisons were made of the level of gene expression among the four groups. The expression of IL-1β in the N-PrD group was 12.6 times that in the N-PrND group (p < 0.01), while the expression of TNF-α in the N-PrND group was 3.5 times that in the N-PrD group (p < 0.05). There were no differences in the expression levels of the genes IL-1β, IL-6, TNF-α and iNOS in pregnant women with and without periodontal disease in comparison to the expression of the same genes in nonpregnant women with and without periodontal disease. The results suggest that periodontal disease is not influenced by pregnancy.