The Chair and Department of Oral Surgery, Medical University of Lublin, 20-081 Lublin, Poland.
J Interferon Cytokine Res. 2013 Sep;33(9):485-92. doi: 10.1089/jir.2012.0149. Epub 2013 Jun 7.
The study was designed to compare the levels of the receptor activator of nuclear factor kappa-B ligand (RANKL) and osteoprotegerin (OPG) in the serum and saliva of menopausal women and verify whether there is a correlation between concentrations of these cytokines and bone mineral density (BMD) of the femur and mandible. Blood and saliva samples were collected from a group of 60 women during menopause--30 untreated (control group) and 30 treated with hormone replacement therapy (HRT) (research group). Densitometry was conducted on the femoral bone and mandible. BMD in the research group was significantly higher than in the control group. The OPG concentration was slightly higher in the research group. The concentration of RANKL was slightly higher in the control group. Differences in RANKL/OPG between groups were not high enough to be statistically significant. Analysis of the RANKL in saliva revealed a significantly higher concentration of this factor in the control group. Observed beneficial effects of HRT on bone tissue may be exerted through the RANKL/OPG ratio, but further research is required to clearly confirm this thesis.
该研究旨在比较绝经后妇女血清和唾液中核因子κB 受体激活剂配体（RANKL）和骨保护素（OPG）的水平，并验证这些细胞因子的浓度与股骨和下颌骨骨密度（BMD）之间是否存在相关性。从一组 60 名处于绝经期的女性中采集了血液和唾液样本-30 名未经治疗（对照组）和 30 名接受激素替代疗法（HRT）治疗（研究组）。对股骨和下颌骨进行了骨密度测定。研究组的 BMD 明显高于对照组。研究组的 OPG 浓度略高。对照组的 RANKL 浓度略高。两组之间的 RANKL/OPG 差异没有高到具有统计学意义。对唾液中 RANKL 的分析显示，对照组中这种因子的浓度明显更高。HRT 对骨组织的有益作用可能是通过 RANKL/OPG 比值发挥的，但需要进一步研究来明确证实这一理论。
