FIG 1.

Fecal microbial transplantation (FMT) affects the response of periodontal tissue in ligature-induced periodontitis (PD). Male C57BL/6N mice received FMT from regular chow (RC)- or high-fat diet (HFD)-fed mice and were either subjected to or not subjected to experimental periodontitis by ligature placement on the maxillary second molar (n = 5/group). (A) Effects of ligature placement on alveolar bone resorption in mice that received FMT from RC-fed (RC-FMT) or HFD-fed (HFD-FMT) mice. Representative photographs obtained after soft tissue removal are shown. (B) The distance between the cementoenamel junction and alveolar bone crest and the exposed tooth root area of the mesial root of the maxillary second molar was measured under a stereoscopic microscope. Red, HFD-FMT with PD; blue, RC-FMT with PD; yellow, HFD-FMT without PD; green, RC-FMT without PD. (C) Histological findings of gingival tissues of ligated and untreated mice. Sections were stained with hematoxylin and eosin. Representative photographs are shown. (D) Relative gene expression levels in the gingiva of each experimental group. The relative quantity of mRNA was normalized to that of glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase mRNA. (E) Lymphocyte fractions were obtained from submandibular lymph nodes. Cells were stimulated with PMA and ionomycin at a concentration of 1 × 10⁶/ml. The cells were stained with anti-CD4 and anti-IL-17 antibodies, and 1 × 10⁴ cells were analyzed by flow cytometry. The percentages of CD4⁺IL-17⁺ and CD4⁺FoxP3⁺ cells were compared. Data are expressed as the mean ± standard error of the mean (SEM). *, P < 0.05; **, P < 0.01; one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) with Bonferroni’s correction for multiple comparisons.