IL-17 Levels in Diabetic and Non-diabetic Experimental Periodontitis : a Pilot Study

Although the clinical relationship between periodontitis and diabetes mellitus (DM) is well established, few investigations have focused on the immunoinflammatory responses in sites with periodontitis in subjects with DM. Because of the potential association between periodontitis and diabetes, the aim of this study was to examine the serum levels of IL17 in diabetic and non-diabetic rats with experimental periodontitis before, and after non-surgical periodontal treatment, in an attempt to establish a correlation between diabetes and periodontitis utilizing IL-17 as a marker. Materials and Methods: This study was conducted on 60 male rats, which were divided randomly into 2 equal groups, each with 30 rats. In the first group, only experimental periodontitis was induced, while in the second group both experimental periodontitis and diabetes were induced. Estimation of the serum levels of IL-17 was done using the ELIZA technique. Results showed that non-surgical periodontal therapy tended to reduce serum IL-17 levels in diabetic and non-diabetic periodontitis groups. Conclusion: In view of the very high prevalence of both periodontitis and diabetes and their potentially severe repercussions, inflammatory cytokines such as IL-17 may substantiate increased risk of the systemic inflammatory burden.