A. At the termination of the experiment (40 weeks), oral swabs from each rat were grown on blood agar plates for 3 days and were then subjected to DNA extraction. An equal amount of DNA from each sample was amplified by PCR using Pg-specific primers. Quantitative estimates of the numbers of Pg was performed by measuring the density of amplified PCR product and the densitometry readings were converted to the number of Pg bacteria based on a standard curve. B. At the termination of the experiment (40 weeks), rat heads were defleshed and processed to measure periodontal bone resorption. The distances from cemento-enamel junction (CEJ) to the alveolar crest (AC) of each root was measured and the sum of the recordings was used as a measure of the total bone loss. (Mean ± SD, n=5, *p< 0.05, **p < 0.01).