AUTORI
Aellos F, Grauer JA, Harder KG, Dworan JS, Fabbri G, Cuevas PL, Yuan X, Liu B, Brunski JB, Helms JA.
ABSTRACT / RIASSUNTO
Aim: To qualitatively and quantitatively evaluate the formation and maturation of peri-implant soft tissues around ‘immediate’ and ‘delayed’ implants.
Materials and methods: Miniaturized titanium implants were placed in either maxillary first molar (mxM1) fresh extraction sockets or healed mxM1 sites in mice. Peri-implant soft tissues were evaluated at multiple timepoints to assess the molecular mechanisms of attachment and the efficacy of the soft tissue as a barrier. A healthy junctional epithelium (JE) served as positive control.
Results: No differences were observed in the rate of soft-tissue integration of immediate versus delayed implants; however, overall, mucosal integration took at least twice as long as osseointegration in this model. Qualitative assessment of Vimentin expression over the time course of soft-tissue integration indicated an initially disorganized peri-implant connective tissue envelope that gradually matured with time. Quantitative analyses showed significantly less total collagen in peri-implant connective tissues compared to connective tissue around teeth around implants. Quantitative analyses also showed a gradual increase in expression of hemidesmosomal attachment proteins in the peri-implant epithelium (PIE), which was accompanied by a significant inflammatory marker reduction.