Expression of fractalkine and RANKL in human periodontal tissue

Abstract

Fractalkine is a chemokine involved in the formation of inflammatory lesions and RANKL is a molecule that plays a pivotal role in bone resorption. Periodontitis is a chronic inflammatory disease that can cause alveolar bone resorption in its advanced stages. We carried out immunohistochemical studies of fractalkine and RANKL in human gingival tissue to see how they are involved in this process. Immunoreactivity for both fractalkine and RANKL were found in endothelial cells of human gingival submucosal vessels. These results suggest that fractalkine and RANKL are important molecules in the pathogenesis and progression of human periodontitis.