Melatonin levels in periodontal health and disease

J Periodontal Res. 2013 Jun;48(3):315-21. doi: 10.1111/jre.12010. Epub 2012 Oct 3.

Abstract

Background and objective: The aim of this study was to measure melatonin levels in the gingival crevicular fluid and saliva of subjects with healthy periodontal tissues, plaque-induced gingival inflammation, chronic periodontitis and aggressive periodontitis.

Material and methods: A total of 70 subjects were examined and assigned to four groups: healthy periodontium (10 subjects); plaque-induced gingival inflammation (20 subjects); chronic periodontitis (20 subjects); and aggressive periodontitis (20 subjects). Gingival crevicular fluid and saliva samples were collected from each subject and analyzed using ELISAs.

Results: The melatonin levels in both gingival crevicular fluid and saliva were lower in patients with chronic periodontitis (10.4 and 12.8 pg/mL, respectively) and aggressive periodontitis (8.4 and 8.8 pg/mL, respectively) than in patients with gingivitis (13.9 and 17.6 pg/mL, respectively) and in healthy subjects (16.6 and 22.9 pg/mL, respectively). The mean melatonin levels in both gingival crevicular fluid and saliva were statistically significantly higher in healthy patients compared with patients with chronic periodontitis and aggressive periodontitis; however, there was no significant difference in the plaque-induced gingival inflammation between the study groups.

Conclusions: The melatonin levels in gingival crevicular fluid and saliva are decreased in diseased periodontal tissues, especially periodontitis. The melatonin level was lowest in the aggressive periodontitis group.

MeSH terms

  • Adolescent
  • Adult
  • Aggressive Periodontitis / metabolism*
  • Analysis of Variance
  • Case-Control Studies
  • Chronic Periodontitis / metabolism*
  • Female
  • Gingival Crevicular Fluid / chemistry
  • Gingivitis / metabolism*
  • Humans
  • Male
  • Melatonin / analysis
  • Melatonin / metabolism*
  • Middle Aged
  • Saliva / chemistry
  • Statistics, Nonparametric
  • Young Adult

Substances

  • Melatonin