Altered glycosylation of immunoglobulin G (IgG) has been found to affect certain immunological activities of IgG and to correlate with increased inflammation in various disease states. This work deals with the changes in distribution and galactosylation of IgG subclasses present in saliva and gingival crevicular fluid (GCF) of patients with initial and advanced periodontitis and of normal controls. IgG subclasses were quantified by dot-blot assay, and the degrees of expression of galactose in the total IgG and its individual subclasses were estimated by lectin immunoblot assay after sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (SDS-PAGE) separation of IgG and by capture enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA), using biotinylated Ricinus communis (RCA-I) and Bandeiraea simplicifolia (BS-II) lectins. The distribution of IgG subclasses in both fluids was found to differ in periodontal patients compared to normal controls. In the periodontitis saliva and GCF, the IgG2 subclass dominated quantitatively, regardless of periodontal status. However, galactose was found to be expressed in IgG heavy chains in normal controls and patients with initial periodontitis but not, or at barely detectable levels, in advanced periodontitis. The results suggest that the shift toward hypogalactosylated glycoforms may occur during the process of inflammation of the gingiva.

Changed glycosylation of immunoglobulin G (IgG), above all, the expression of thermal galactose, influence to numerous functions of those immunoglobulin and correlate with the inflammatory level in a number of diseases. Aim: This work analyses the distribution of IgG subclasses and the content of thermal galactose in them, in saliva and gingival fluid of the patients with periodontal disease and different gum inflammatory level. Materials and methods: It was used saliva and gingival fluid of 30 adults with clinical picture of periodontal disease and 20 persons with healthy periodontium. The qualification of IgG was done by ?dot-blot? procedure and the, and thermal galactose was determined by lectin immunoblot procedure. Results: The division of IgG subclasses in both fluids was different in the patients with periodontal disease and in control samples. In saliva and gingival fluid of the diseased quantitatively dominated IgG2 subclasses, independently from periodontal status. In IgG of both fluids, thermal galactose was exprimated at the healthy periodontium persons (control) and with the person with initial periodontal disease, while at the person with increased periodontal disease the expression of this saccharide wasn?t registered in neither of fluids. Conclusion: The results showed that there is a shift towards hypogalactosyled IgG glikoforms during the process of gum inflammation at the periodontal disease patients. .