Immunohistochemical Evaluation of P53 and Epidermal Growth Factor Receptor Proteins Expression Levels in Gingival Tissue of Opium-dependent Patients

BACKGROUND: Although evidence indicates that tobacco use is one of the risk factors for oral cancer, the relationship between opium addiction and oral cancer has not yet been evaluated. The present study was performed aiming to evaluate P53 and epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) expression in the gingival tissue of opium-dependent patients. METHODS: 102 individuals (70 men and 32 women) were entered in the study. 63 and 39 individuals were included in the opium-dependent group and opium-independent group (control group), respectively. 1 gingival biopsy was taken from each individual. The biopsies were fixed in 10% buffered formaldehyde solution and embedded in paraffin at 56 °C. The slides were then stained with Hematoxylin-Eosin (H & E) and Immunohistochemistry (IHC) evaluation was performed with the antihuman antibodies of P53 and EGFR. The protein expression level was later assessed and data were analyzed statistically. FINDINGS: P53 expression was higher among the opium-dependent group, however the difference was not statistically significant (P = 0.052). EGFR expression was significantly higher among the opium-dependent group compared to the control group (P = 0.006). CONCLUSION: Opium dependency significantly affects EGFR expression in gingival tissue, however it seems to have no significant effect on P53 expression.