The Humoral Immune Response to AsaccharolyticEubacteriumSpecies in Periodontitis

Abstract

Asaccharolytic Eubacterium species are strongly associated with advanced periodontal disease. Raised systemic antibody levels to Eubacterium brachv, E. nodatum and E. timidum have been found in periodontitis patients compared to healthy controls using ELJSA and RIA. This study compared antibody profiles in periodontitis patients and controls against oral asaccharolytic Eubacterium species by Western blotting. Whole-cell proteins from strains of E. brachy, E. nodatum, E. timidum and representative strains of five candidate species were separated using PhastSystem SDS-PAGE. The proteins were electroblotted onto nitrocellulose and probed with 23 sera from periodontitis patients and 23 from periodontally healthy age- and sex-matched controls. Antibodies were present to proteins of all strains except E. nodatum but there was no relationship between patterns of antigen recognition and periodontal status.