Interrelationship between liver fibrosis and apical periodontitis. Organ analysis by the AIM2 inflammasome in Wild-Type mice.

• Grant number: 22/16457-9
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Scientific Initiation
• Start date: February 01, 2023
• End date: October 31, 2023
• Field of knowledge: Health Sciences - Dentistry - Endodontics
• Principal Investigator: Luciano Tavares Angelo Cintra
• Grantee: Laís Ventura Barroti
• Host Institution: Faculdade de Odontologia (FOA). Universidade Estadual Paulista (UNESP). Campus de Araçatuba. Araçatuba , SP, Brazil

Abstract

Introduction: The interrelation between systemic changes with the development and progression of oral infections, such as apical periodontitis, has been the subject of intense studies in recent years, especially by our research group. Objective: To evaluate the effects of apical periodontitis and distant hepatic fibrosis on organs (brain, heart, lung, spleen and kidney) by histological and immunohistochemical analysis. Methods: Forty C5BL/6J Wild-Type mice divided into 4 groups (n=10) will be used: Group C - control; Group PA - mice with PA; Group FH - mice with FH; Group PA+FH - mice with PA and FH. FH will be chemically induced by administering Carbon Tetrachloride (CCl4) at a dose of 0.2 µL/g, twice a week, intraperitoneally, for 60 days. After 30 days of drug administration, PA will be induced by pulpal exposure of the right upper and lower first and second molars. On day 60, before euthanasia, the animals will be weighed, the blood glucose level will be measured, and then they will be euthanized, the jaws, livers, brain, heart, lung, spleen, and kidney will be collected for analysis under light microscopy, and the weight of the organs will be recorded. The jaws will be analyzed by Hematoxylin and Eosin (H&E) staining, and the livers by H&E and Picrosirius red (PSR) staining to verify the presence of apical periodontitis and hepatic fibrosis, respectively. The organs (brain, heart, lung, spleen and kidney) will be processed for histological analysis in H&E and immunohistochemistry of the marker AIM2.