Objective: Porphyromonas gingivalis (P. gingivalis) is regarded as one of the major pathogens involved in the pathogenesis of periodontal disease. P. gingivalis is known to express many virulence factors, which allows it not only to survive in the oral environment but also to alter host cell functions including their production of cytokines. These cytokines then act via second-messenger pathways to stimulate an immune and/or inflammatory response, which includes the induction of the matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs). The MMPs are significant mediators of tissue destruction in periodontal disease. It has been shown that human gingival fibroblasts (HGFs) exposed to P. gingivalis lipopolysaccharide increased the expression of multiple cytokines, especially growth-regulated oncogene-alpha (GRO-α). Therefore, the purpose of this study was to determine if P. gingivalis supernatant induced this same effect and in turn if GRO-α alters MMP expression. Methods: HGFs were incubated for 48 hours in the presence or absence of 10% P. gingivalis supernatant. The total protein concentration was then determined and identical concentrations utilized in cytokine protein arrays. The HGFs were then incubated for 48 hours in either the presence or absence of GRO-α. The MMP expression was then determined by MMP protein arrays. Results: GRO-α was the cytokine most altered by the P. gingivalis supernatant. Other cytokines that were altered, but not to the same level, included MCP-1, IL-6, GRO, IL-8, IL-10 and RANTES. It was not possible to detect any alterations in the MMP expression from the HGFs treated with 10 ng/mL GRO-α. Conclusions: P. gingivalis supernatant increases cytokine expression from HGFs. The cytokine that was the most altered was GRO-α. However, GRO-α at 10 ng/mL did not alter the MMP expression from HGFs as determined by the MMP protein arrays. Additional studies utilizing higher concentrations of GRO-α may alter MMP expression.

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