Objective. The aim of the present study was to investigate the presence of inflammatory mediators in rats with only periodontitis and periodontitis in a setting of hyper- and hypo-thyroidism and to analyze the correlative linkages between inflammatory mediators and thyroid hormones.
Methods. White male 12–14 weeks old inbred rats (n=48) weighing 180–200 g were employed in the experiment. They were randomly divided into the following groups: Group I – control group, Group II – group with a model of periodontitis, Group III – group with a periodontitis in a setting of hyperthyroidism, and Group IV – group with periodontitis in a setting of hypothyroidism. The presence of tumor-necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) and interleukins IL-1β and IL-10 in the periodontal homogenate supernatant was studied by a solid-phase enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay.
Results. It was shown that experimental lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced periodontitis is accompanied by hyperproduction of pro-inflammatory cytokines (TNF-α, IL-1β) and reduction of anti-inflammatory cytokines (IL-10), whereas TNF-α underwent to maximum changes. Thyroid dysfunction exacerbates cytokine imbalance and severity of inflammation in experimental LPS-induced periodontitis, especially pronounced at hyperthyroidism, as evidenced by the predominance of TNF-α and IL-1β levels in the periodontal homogenate supernatant by 38.5% (р<0.01) and 75.6% (p<0.001), respectively, hyperthyroid over the euthyroid, and by 20.1% (p<0.05) and 24.1% (p<0.05), respectively, over the hypothyroid rats.
Conclusions. Thyroid dysfunction, especially hyperthyroidism, may play an important role in the pro-inflammatory response in periodontitis. Hyperproduction of inflammatory mediators in thyroid dysfunction can induce a noticeable damage in the whole apparatus of the periodontium, thereby causing progression of periodontitis.
