Spontaneous gingival antibody production to Fusobacterium nucleatum outer membrane in patients with adult periodontitis

Abstract

The local antibody response to Fusobacterium nucleatum outer membrane (FnOM) was analyzed in patients with adult periodontitis (AP) at the single cell level. Furthermore, we analyzed whether periodontal hygienic treatment could alter the antibody response. The number of IgG- and IgM-producing cells were investigated in gingival samples collected from 20 patients with AP. The patients were divided into 2 groups, before (BT, n = 9) and after (AT, n = 11) periodontal hygienic treatment. Four healthy gingival samples were used as controls. The results obtained showed that local antibody production against FnOM occurred in gingiva of patients with AP, but not in healthy gingiva. The IgG anti-FnOM was the predominant isotype observed. However, there was no statistically significant difference between the BT and AT groups. These results indicate that periodontal hygienic treatment was not sufficient to alter significantly the number of IgG- and IgM-secreting cells present in gingival tissue of AP patients, but it promoted a reduction of IgG anti-FnOM secreting cells. The presence of anti-FnOM antibodies in AP but not in control patients indicates that this bacteria may play a role in the pathogenesis of periodontal disease.