Associations between HBD3 and Pro-Inflammatory Cytokines in Asymptomatic Irreversible Pulpitis

Abstract

Objective: The aim of this study was to investigate the levels of Human Beta Defensin (hBD) 2 and 3, chemokine and cytokine expressions between teeth endodontically diagnosed with symptomatic irreversible pulpitis (SIP), asymptomatic irreversible pulpitis (ASIP) and normal pulps. We hypothesized that there would be a correlation between hBD’s and the immunoregulatory response. Design: Pulpal samples were collected with paper points. Six samples were obtained from normal teeth, 21 from SIP, 18 from ASIP. Levels of cytokines and betadefensins were measured by Luminex technology and ELISA, respectively. Data were statistically analyzed using Kruskal-Wallis, Wilcoxon Mann-Whitney test and Spearman correlation test. Differences were considered significant at p<0.05. Results: hBD-2 levels correlated with samples obtained from patients in the ASIP group, but not in the samples obtained from patients with SIP or the control group. HBD-3 concentrations associated with all of the cytokines and chemokines in both SIP and ASIP groups. However, in the normal group, hBD-3 correlated with only TNFα, IL-8, MCP-1, IL-1β, MIP-1a, RANTES, IL-17 in normal group. When comparing control levels of hBD-2 and hBD-3 with patients samples from either the ASIP or the SIP groups, hBD-2 and hBD-3 concentrations were highest in the ASIP group. Conclusions: The hBD-2 and-3 were highly associated with the levels of the chemokines and cytokines in ASIP group. HBD-3 concentrations correlate with the levels of the chemokines and the cytokines in the SIP and ASIP groups.