The effects of immunization in modulating the pathogenesis of Bacteroides (Porphyromonas) gingivalis infection in a murine model system were examined. BALB/c mice were immunized by intraperitoneal injection with B. gingivalis ATCC 53977 (one injection per week for 3 weeks), or with a lithium diiodosalicylate (LIS) extract (one injection per week for 3 weeks), or with lipopolysaccharide (LPS; one intravenous or intraperitoneal injection) from this same strain. Two weeks after the final immunization, the mice were challenged by * Corresponding author.

In this study, evidence is presented that mixed infection with the periodontal pathogens Porphyromonas gingivalis and Actinobacillus actinomycetemcomitans results in a synergistic effect in their pathogenicity and in their ability to induce humoral and cellular host responses. BALB/c mice were injected subcutaneously on the back with P. gingivalis ATCC 53977, A. actinomycetemocomitans 75 or a mixture of both bacteria. Samples of blood and fluid from abscesses formed at the site of injection (first degree) or distant from the injection site were collected for microbiologic analysis. Serum and spleens were obtained for evaluation of humoral and cellular responses to P. gingivalis and A actinomycetemocomitans. Mice injected with A. actinomycetemcomitans had first-degree lesions only, whereas mice injected with P. gingivalis and A. actinomycetemcomitans had lesions at first- and second-degree sites from which both bacterial species were isolated. A serum anti-P. gingivalis response was induced in P. gingivalis-injected mice, which was higher in mice injected with P. gingivalis and A. actinomycetemcomitans. This pattern was not seen in the anti-A, actinomycetemcomitans response. Lymphoproliferative responses to phytohemagglutinin, Escherichia coli lipopolysaccharide and P. gingivalis of spleen cells from infected mice were decreased, especially following co-infection. Furthermore, co-infection of mice resulted in the greatest decrease in the number of CD5+, especially CD4+ lymphocytes.

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The purpose of this report was to study the role of T lymphocytes following injection of Porphyromonas gingivalis in a mouse abscess model. Three invasive P. gingivalis isolates (ATCC 53977, W83, and AJW4) were injected into athymic BALB/c mice and their heterozygous (nu/+) littermates. The athymic BALB/c (nu/nu) mice were able to localize the invasive P. gingivalis isolates at the injection site. By comparison, the heterozygous BALB/c (nu/+) littermates developed hemorrhagic secondary lesions within 24 h after subcutaneous injection of the same invasive P. gingivalis isolates. These results suggest that naive T lymphocytes may contribute to the pathology associated with P. gingivalis infection.