title: Regulation of periodontal ligament cell functions by interleukin-1beta.
abstract: Periodontal ligament (PDL) cells maintain the attachment of the tooth to alveolar bone. These cells reside at a site in which they are challenged frequently by bacterial products and proinflammatory cytokines, such as interleukin-1beta (IL-1beta), during infections. In our initial studies we observed that IL-1beta down-regulates the osteoblast-like characteristics of PDL cells in vitro. Therefore, we examined the functional significance of the loss of the PDL cell's osteoblast-like characteristics during inflammation. In this report we show that, during inflammation, IL-1beta can modulate the phenotypic characteristics of PDL cells to a more functionally significant lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-responsive phenotype. In a healthy periodontium PDL cells exhibit an osteoblast-like phenotype and are unresponsive to gram-negative bacterial LPS. Treatment of PDL cells with IL-1beta inhibits the expression of their osteoblast-like characteristics, as assessed by the failure to express transforming growth factor beta1 (TGF-beta1) and proteins associated with mineralization, such as alkaline phosphatase and osteocalcin. As a consequence of this IL-1beta-induced phenotypic change, PDL cells become responsive to LPS and synthesize proinflammatory cytokines. The IL-1beta-induced phenotypic changes in PDL cells were transient, as removal of IL-1beta from PDL cell cultures resulted in reacquisition of their osteoblast-like characteristics and lack of LPS responsiveness. The IL-1beta-induced phenotypic changes occurred at concentrations that are frequently observed in tissue exudates during periodontal inflammation (0.05 to 5 ng/ml). The results suggest that, during inflammation in vivo, IL-1beta may modulate PDL cell functions, allowing PDL cells to participate directly in the disease process by assuming LPS responsiveness at the expense of their normal structural properties and functions.
authors.affiliation: Division of Oral Biology, University of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 15261, USA. sagar+@pitt.edu
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Agarwal
authors.forename: C S
authors.initials: CS
authors.lastname: Chandra
authors.forename: N P
authors.initials: NP
authors.lastname: Piesco
authors.forename: H H
authors.initials: HH
authors.lastname: Langkamp
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Bowen
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Baran
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D006801:Humans; D007375:Interleukin-1 / Q000494:pharmacology*; D008070:Lipopolysaccharides / Q000494:pharmacology; D008297:Male; D010006:Osteoblasts / Q000187:drug effects / Q000502:physiology; D010513:Periodontal Ligament / Q000166:cytology / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000502:physiology; D010518:Periodontitis / Q000276:immunology*; D010641:Phenotype; D011994:Recombinant Proteins / Q000494:pharmacology
chemical_list: D007375:Interleukin-1; D008070:Lipopolysaccharides; D011994:Recombinant Proteins