Salivary macrophage chemokines as potential biomarkers of gingivitis

The present study aimed to analyze the salivary levels of macrophage-activating factor (MAF), macrophage-chemotactic factor (MCF), and macrophage migration inhibitory factor (MIF) in healthy and gingivitis patients, and to correlate between the concentrations of these chemo attractants with the intensity of gingival inflammation clinically.

Sixty saliva specimens were collected from periodontally healthy (n = 30), and gingivitis patients (n = 30). Bleeding on probing (BOP), Visible Plaque Index (VPI), and Simplified Modified Gingival Index (SMGI) were recorded through clinical examination. Salivary MAF, MCF, and MIF concentrations were assayed using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays (ELISA). Statistical analysis was performed using SPSS (version 28). Total mean score for each biomarker was determined, and descriptive bivariate statistics were conducted to characterize the levels of biomarkers among the study groups. The difference in the biomarker levels among the study groups were analyzed by independent sample t test and one-way ANOVA. The diagnostic ability of the biomarkers was further tested by ROC curve analysis.

Salivary levels of MAF was not significantly different between periodontally healthy individuals and gingivitis patients. The difference in MCF and MIF levels between patients with gingivitis and those with healthy periodontium was statistically significant (p 0.05 and p 0.001, respectively). When examined across the various stages of disease progression, MIF showed statistically significant difference among the three biomarkers (p 0.05). ROC curve analysis further revealed that area under the curve (AUC) for MIF has a better diagnostic capacity than MCF (AUC 0.981 vs. 0.673).

Our results suggest that MIF could be considered as a potential salivary biomarker for gingivitis.