Increased visfatin expression is associated with nuclear factor-kappa B and phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase in periodontal inflammation

Objective Visfatin is an adipocytokine that plays a role in regulating periodontal inflammation by as yet identified mechanisms. It has been suggested that visfatin mediates inflammation via activation of the nuclear factor-kappa B (NF-κB) and phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase (PI3k) signaling pathways which play a role in the inhibition of neutrophil apoptosis. The aim of this study was to investigate the expression of visfatin, NF-κB (NF-κB 1 and NF-κB 2 ), PI3k, tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-α), and interleukin-1 beta (IL-1β) in the tissue of healthy individuals and patients with periodontitis. Materials and methods Tissue biopsy samples were obtained from 21 patients with chronic periodontitis and from the gingiva of 19 healthy individuals undergoing crown lengthening. The mRNA expression levels of visfatin, NF-κB, PI3k, TNF-α, and IL-1β were evaluated by quantitative real-time PCR (qPCR). Also, visfatin protein expression was measured by immunohistochemistry. Results Both qPCR and immunohistochemistry results revealed that the visfatin expression was higher in the tissues with periodontitis than in healthy tissues ( P