Effect of the topical use of the antioxidant taurine on the two basement membrane proteins of regenerating oral gingival epithelium.

BACKGROUND

The essential amino acid taurine has important physiologic and pathologic roles, and has been shown to have osmoregulatory, antioxidative, antiapoptotic, anti-inflammatory, and antilipid activities. However, the response of oral gingival epithelium to taurine during wound healing remains unclear. The goal of this study is to evaluate the expression of laminin 5 and Type IV collagen histologically in regenerating gingival epithelium after direct application of taurine on incised human gingival samples.

METHODS

The study was conducted on 16 gingival samples obtained from gingivectomy specimens of eight adult patients with generalized gingival overgrowth. The samples were divided into two groups: gingiva with 1% taurine-hydrated collagen membrane (n = 8) and saline-hydrated collagen membrane (n = 8) applied specimens. The length of the newly formed epithelium on the wound surface and inflammation was assessed on hematoxylin and eosin-stained sections. Basement membrane formation was evaluated by detection of laminin 5 and Type IV collagen expressions on immunohistochemically stained samples.

RESULTS

Complete new epithelial formation was observed in 1% taurine-treated gingivectomy specimens, whereas incomplete regeneration of the epithelium was observed in control gingivectomy specimens (P <0.05). The length of the newly formed epithelium showed a negative correlation with inflammation in the taurine group (P = -0.712; P <0.05). Immunoreactivity for both laminin 5 and Type IV collagen did not show any significant difference between groups.

CONCLUSION

The local application of taurine-hydrated collagen membrane on human gingival wounds demonstrated the histologic evidence of rapid reepithelization with taurine.