Quantitative Proteomic Analysis of Gingival Crevicular Fluid in Different Periodontal Conditions

AIM: To quantify the proteome composition of the GCF in periodontal health (HH) and in sites with different clinical conditions in chronic periodontitis (CP) subjects. MATERIAL AND METHODS: 5 subjects with HH and 5 with CP were submitted to full-mouth periodontal examination, and GCF sampling. Sites in the CP group were classified and sampled as periodontitis (P, probing depth, PD>4 mm), gingivitis (G, PD≤3mm with bleeding on probing, BOP), and healthy sites (H, PD≤3mm without BOP). GCF proteins were subjected to liquid chromatography electrospray ionization mass spectrometry for identification, characterization and quantification. RESULTS: 230 proteins were identified; 145 proteins were detected in HH, 214 in P, 154 in G, and 133 in H. Four proteins were exclusively detected at HH, 43 proteins at P, 7 proteins at G, and 1 protein at H. Compared to HH group, 35 and 6 proteins were more abundant in P and G (p<0.001), respectively; and 4, 15 and 37 proteins were less abundant in P, G and H (p≤0.01), respectively. CONCLUSIONS: There are marked differences in the GCF proteome according to disease profile. Comprehension of the role of the identified proteins in the etiopathogenesis of periodontal disease may lead to biomarkers definition.