Formation of normal gingival epithelial phenotypes around osseo-integrated oral implants in humans

The oral, oral sulcular, and junctional epithelia of the natural gingiva each possess distinct patterns of differentiation that are demonstrable both ultrastructurally and by their individual patterns of macromolecular synthesis. The supracrestal tissues reformed around oral implants structurally resemble those of natural gingiva but little is known about phenotype changes occurring in the epithelia. To investigate whether peri-implant epithelia acquire similar patterns of differentiation to those of natural gingiva, biopsies from the supracrestal regions of five oral implants were examined by immunofluorescent methods using a panel of monoclonal antibodies with specificities for individual cytokeratins and ICAM-1, macromolecules which act as markers of the three gingival epithelial phenotypes. The observed staining patterns indicated the formation of oral, oral sulcular, and junctional epithelia which were phenotypically indistinguishable from those of natural gingival epithelia. This degree of reprogramming of epithelial gene expression is a surprising observation and the potential mechanisms leading to the development of those new epithelial phenotypes are discussed in the context of what is known about the development of natural gingiva, in terms of the possible effects of inflammation, and in relation to the known connective tissue influences on epithelial differentiation.