Infection by Porphyromonas gingivalis and Actinobacillus actinomycetemcomitans, and antibody responses at different ages in humans

This study examined the serum IgG and IgM responses against Porphyromonas gingivalis and 3 serotypes of Actinobacillus actinomycetemcomitans, and the correlations of these responses with age and homologous infection. A total of 90 individuals were included in this study: 40 subjects with gingivitis, 40 periodontally healthy subjects, and 10 adult periodontitis subjects. The subjects in the gingivitis and periodontally healthy groups were divided into 4 stages based on their physiological age: early childhood, school age, puberty, and adult. In the gingivitis group, there was a positive correlation between increase in age and increase in serum IgG antibody levels against P. gingivalis until puberty. However, no statistically significant difference was found between the puberty stage and the adult stage. The average level of IgG antibodies against A. actinomycetemcomitans in the school age gingivitis group was significantly higher than that in the early childhood gingivitis group for all serotypes (p < 0.01). In serotype c, IgG antibody levels in the school age gingivitis group were significantly higher than in the early childhood gingivitis group or the adult gingivitis group (p < 0.01). With both P. gingivalis and A. actinomycetemcomitans, positive correlations between elevated IgG level and infections by these microorganisms were found in the puberty gingivitis and adult periodontitis groups.