Kava Treatment Reduced Porphyromonas gingivalis Induced Alveolar Bone Loss

Objectives: Porphyromonas gingivalis (P. gingivalis) is a well-documented pathogen in chronic periodontitis. Kava, a compound extracted from the Piper methysticum plant, has been shown to have anti-inflammatory effects in various systemic inflammatory diseases. The aim of this study was to assess the effect of a modified Kava compound, Kava-241, on periodontal destruction in a periodontitis-induced mouse model.
Methods: The study involved 49 mice divided into control, diseased, and treatment groups. Diseased mice were infected with P. gingivalis via oral gavage and a type 2 collagen antibody over a 15-day period. Treated mice received Kava-241 treatment before or after disease induction over the same 15-day period. Negative controls included Kava-241 treatment only without P. gingivalis infection. Bone loss and cell activity were assessed by morphometric analysis of left mouse maxilla and by histomorphometric analysis of TRAP and H&E tissue sections of right mouse maxilla.
Results: The diseased group showed significantly increased alveolar bone loss, inflammation, and osteoclastic activity throughout the experimental period compared to controls. In periodontal connective tissues, Kava-241 treated mice showed significant decreases of 62.0% and 41.6% of polymorphonucleocyte and monocyte cell counts, respectively, compared to untreated mice. Mice treated post-infection showed statistically significant decreases in alveolar bone loss versus controls. Histomorphometric analysis demonstrated 72.7% and 37.0% reductions of epithelial down-growth and bone loss respectively; morphometric analysis demonstrated a 46.7% reduction of bone loss. Osteoclastic activity showed a trend of reduced bone loss between the treated and untreated groups. Pre- and post-infection treated groups showed similar levels of bone loss and inflammatory cell activity.
Conclusions: Our results showed evidence that P. gingivalis induced periodontitis can be treated by modified Kava-241 in a murine model. The experimental model demonstrated the use of morphometry and histomorphometry to accurately quantify alveolar bone loss. Further modification of Kava could yield more effective mediators of inflammation in periodontitis.