Epigenetic biomarkers: a step forward for understanding periodontitis

Abstract

Periodontitis is a common oral disease that is characterized by infection and inflammation of the tooth supporting tissues. While its incidence is highly associated with outgrowth of the pathogenic microbiome, some patients show signs of predisposition and quickly fall into recurrence after treatment. Recent research using genetic associations of candidates as well as genome-wide analysis highlights that variations in genes related to the inflammatory response are associated with an increased risk of periodontitis. Intriguingly, some of the genes are regulated by epigenetic modifications, supposedly established and reprogrammed in response to environmental stimuli. In addition, the treatment with epigenetic drugs improves treatment of periodontitis in a mouse model. In this review, we highlight some of the recent progress identifying genetic factors associated with periodontitis and point to promising approaches in epigenetic research that may contribute to the understanding of molecular mechanisms involving different responses in individuals and the early detection of predispositions that may guide in future oral treatment and disease prevention.

What is the Contribution of Genetics to Periodontal Risk?

“…Another important aspect, essentially not addressed in this chapter, is the potential role of epigenetics in the pathobiology of periodontitis (14). This new and emerging field will yield in the years to come new valuable information in relation to the susceptibility of periodontitis.…”

“…There are several main causal risk factors, (i) the subgingival bacterial biofilm on both the tooth root surface and on the pocket epithelial lining (12), (ii) genetic risk factors and epigenetic modifications (9,13,14), (iii) life style related risk factors, such as smoking, stress and poor diet or micronutrients intake (15)(16)(17), (iv) systemic disease, notably diabetes (18) and (v) others factors as of yet unknown, but possibly occlusal disturbances or fremitus, iatrogenic aspects (19) (Figure 1). …”

Oral Biosciences: The annual review 2014

“…Epigenetic modifications may cause other common diseases, such as diabetes, metabolic diseases, allergies, autoimmune diseases, and neurodegenerative diseases [103][104][105][106]. Recently, epigenetic alterations have been implicated in the development of periodontal disease [107][108][109]. These studies have concentrated on alterations in the methylation profile as the major epigenetic change.…”

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“…[61] Periodontitis infected pulp and periodontal tissue may alter gene expression patterns of inflammatory cytokines. [70][71][72][73]33,75] Therefore, these epigenetic biomarkers are to be determined for prevention and treatment of dental diseases. The link between inflammation and oral cancer is well established, and the connection between bacterial infection and inflammation is evident.…”