Inhibitory Effect Of Pomegranate Extract Powder On Periodontitis In Rats

Objectives: Pomegranate extract is a compound that has a significant clinical value, indicating antibacterial, antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, anti-proliferative, and DNA therapeutic activities.
The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effect of pomegranate extract on the progression of periodontal disease in an experimental rat model of periodontitis.
Methods: Forty Sprague-Dawley rats were used in this study. They were grouped as follows: (1) group 1: no ligation + Distilled water(DW); (2) group 2: silk ligation + pgLPS + DW; (3) group 3: silk ligation + pgLPS + 22 μg/ml pomegranate extract solution; and (4) group 4: silk ligation + pgLPS + 44 μg/ml pomegranate extract solution. Periodontitis was induced by placing a 5-0 black silk ligature around the maxillary second molar and injecting 1 μg/ml pgLPS into the gingiva every week. Pomegranate extract solution or DW was orally administered daily. The animals were sacrificed at 3 weeks, and tissue specimens around the maxillary second molar were harvested from these animals. The specimens were analyzed using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay(ELISA), micro-CT imaging and histometric measurements.
Results: Among the inflammation-related cytokines, COX-1 showed a significantly lower expression in the group 3, 4 than in the group 2. COX-2 expression was significantly lower in the group 3, 4 than in the group 1, 2. Micro-CT revealed significant alveolar bone resorption inhibition in the group 3, 4 than in the group 2. Histometric evaluation showed little gingival recession and alveolar bone loss.
Conclusions: Pomegranate extract has an effect of inhibiting the progression of alveolar bone loss due to periodontal inflammation by reducing the expression of COX-1 and COX-2 in the process of periodontal disease.