ABSTRACT
CONTEXT: Aggressive periodontitis is a type of inflammatory response in periodontal tissues that is differentiated from chronic by its earlier onset, its high rate of progression, subgingival microbial composition, the difference in the host's immune response, and family history of the disease. Mast cells live in tissues and contribute to the various allergic and inflammatory conditions, including periodontal diseases, through the release of cytokines, chemokines, and proteolytic enzymes. CD117, the receptor of the stem cell factor expressed by the mast cells, is the hallmark of mast cell development. This study aimed to determine the expression level of CD117 in the mast cells of aggressive periodontitis using immunohistochemistry. AIMS: This study aimed to determine the expression level of CD117 in the mast cells of aggressive periodontitis using immunohistochemistry. SUBJECTS AND METHODS: The study was conducted on tissue samples from 15 patients with aggressive periodontitis and 15 patients with healthy gingival tissue. Samples were stained for CD117 markers using immunohistochemistry. After the microscopic examination of samples, all data were entered into SPSS 20 and analyzed. STATISTICAL ANALYSIS USED: Statistical data were analyzed using Kolmogorov-Smirnov test and independent t-test. RESULTS: According to the results, the mean expression levels of CD117 in the aggressive periodontitis and normal gingival groups were 19.08 ± 6.9 and 18.2 ± 8.1, respectively, which were not statistically significant (P = 0.75). The Kolmogorov-Smirnov test verified the normality of distribution of CD117 expression level. Given the normal distribution of the scores, the independent t-test was used to compare the CD117 expression level in the two study groups. CONCLUSIONS: There was no significant difference in the level of CD117 expression between the control and aggressive periodontitis groups.
