Basic fibroblast growth factor suppresses tropoelastin gene expression in cultured human periodontal fibroblasts

Growth factors are known to play a major role in the regeneration of the periodontium. Basic fibroblast growth factor (bFGF) is a polypeptide growth factor considered to have a role in chemotaxis and mitogenesis of periodontal ligament (PDL) cells. The aim of this study was to assess the effect of bFGF on the transcription level of tropoelastin. As known controls, we assessed the transcription levels of collagen type I, collagen type II and the housekeeping gene, actin. Initially, PDL cells were cultured without bFGF for 3, 7 and 14 days. At each time point. total RNA was extracted and the levels of transcription were assessed by semiquantitative reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) assay. The results showed that tropoelastin mRNA is transcribed in PDL cells and its levels increased from minimal amounts by day 3 to maximal amounts by day 14 of culture. We further examined the effect of the addition of 10 ng/ml bFGF to the culture media by day 14. The results showed that the addition of bFGF suppressed the transcription level of tropoelastin. At that time, as expected, a decrease in collagen type I transcription level was shown, while the transcription level of collagen type III was not affected. The findings that elastin is transcribed in vitro by PDL cells, but only negligibly in vivo, imply mechanisms that downregulate or even shut down the expression of the elastin gene in the functioning PDL. Basic FGF might be one of the cytokines involved in control of elastin expression in vivo.