Serum levels of monocyte chemoattractant protein-1 in periodontal health and disease

Objectives: Initial research has reported high levels of monocyte chemoattractant protein-1 (MCP-1) in gingival crevicular fluid (GCF) of periodontitis patients. Present study has been carried out to assess its concentration in serum and to find its association with periodontal health and disease. Design: 60 subjects were divided into three groups (n = 20) based on gingival index (GI), probing pocket depth (PPD) and clinical attachment loss (CAL): healthy (group I), gingivitis (group II) and chronic periodontitis (group III). A fourth group (group IV) consisted of 20 subjects from group III, 6–8 weeks after treatment [i.e. scaling and root planing (SRP)]. Serum samples obtained from each patient were quantified for MCP-1 using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). Results: The mean MCP-1 concentration in serum was found to be the highest in group III i.e. 465.80 pg/ml and lowest in group I i.e. 155.20 pg/ml. For group II (251.60 pg/ml) and group IV (263.20 pg/ml) the mean MCP-1 concentrations were found to lie in between the concentrations obtained in group I and III. Conclusions: Serum MCP-1 concentration was found to be, approximately one and half folds higher in gingivitis patients (group II) and three folds higher in chronic periodontitis patients (group III) as compared to healthy subjects (group I). Further, the MCP-1 concentration increased proportionally with the severity of disease in group II and III showing positive correlation with clinical parameters. Thus, its role as an inflammatory biomarker in periodontal disease can be proposed.