Ukrainian Medical Stomatological Academy

The aim of the study was to investigate whether oral administration of L-arginine or L-ornithine could modulate local representation density and ratio of macrophages in periodontitis-affected gingiva by using immunohistochemical detection of CD68+ and CD163+ macrophages in biopsies of the gingiva.
The null hypothesis tested was that L-arginine and L-ornithine have no influences on CD68+ and CD163+ macrophages densities when supplementing the treatment of periodontitis.
Materials and methods. 75 individuals with a diagnosis of generalized periodontitis at stages II-III and grade B (38 women and 37 men, 51% and 49%, respectively) were included in the study. Periodontitis was diagnosed by using the criteria of the Classification of Periodontal and Peri-Implant Diseases and Conditions 2017. 25 patients received scaling and root planing only; 25 patients additionally received L-arginine, and 25 - L-ornithine, according to instructions available in Ukraine.
For the immunohistochemical study of paraffin-embedded sections, the gingival biopsy was taken from 5 selected patients per group before treatment and after 1 month. CD68+ (cluster of differentiation 68 positive) and CD163+ cells served as a morphological equivalent of M1, M2 macrophages subpopulations, and their densities were calculated per 10000 μm2. Statistical analysis was performed by adequate power methods.

The growing interest in the possibilities of modulating macrophages in inflammatory diseases with therapeutic purpose has prompted the development of new approaches for the treatment of periodontitis.
This randomized add-on open clinical study evaluated the short-term effects of azithromycin (Az) as an adjunct to scaling and root planing (SRP) in patients with chronic periodontitis.
The investigators measured periodontal parameters, and collected gingival biopsies from patients with periodontitis (P group, n=50) before and 1 month after scaling and root planning (SRP group, n=25), after scaling and root planning with oral azithromycin administration (Az group, n=25), and from periodontally healthy individuals (H group, n=25). The last served as a reference group. Macrophage subpopulations were identified through immunohistochemistry as single positive CD68+ and CD163+ cells. The levels of M1-, and M2-related cytokines (IL1-β, IL-6, IL-10, TGF-β) assay in the tissue culture medium was provided by ELISA. The data were statistically analyzed by appropriate methods.
The null hypothesis tested was that L-arginine and L-ornithine have no influences on CD68+ and CD163+ Mφs densities.

Pioglitazone, a medication of thiazolidinedione group, is capable of triggering the peroxisome proliferator-activated receptors (PPAR-γ). Activation of receptor PPAR-γ regulates carbohydrate and lipid metabolism, immune and inflammatory responses in heart tissues.
Our aim will to study the effect of pioglitazone on insulin resistance, the clinical course of atherosclerosis and coronary heart disease (CHD).
The study will include 43 patients with coronary artery disease. Patients will be divided into the study group - 20 patients, in whom pioglitazone will be included in the combined therapy at a dose of 15 mg 1 time per day in the morning, and the control group - 23 patients receiving standard complex drug therapy over 6 months. Patients will be underwent clinical examination, ultrasound of neck vessels, study of carbohydrate and lipid metabolism.
The end primary points of the study will be the onset of death due to myocardial infarction, coronary revascularization procedures (coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG) or percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI)), or hospitalization for acute coronary syndrome (ACS) or unstable angina (UA).
Predefined secondary end points included carotic atherosclerotic leisure (carotic intima-media thickness, diameter of stenosis, presents of atherosclerotic plaque), systemic inflammation level (the level of C reactive protein), lipid metabolism (levels of serum total cholesterol, triglycerides, high and low density lipoproteins), level of insulin resistance ( oral glucose tolerance test, blood glucose).