BACKGROUND: Members of the matrix metalloproteinase (MMP) family are implicated in the chronic remodeling in periodontal diseases. Therefore, we performed a case-control study to investigate a plausible association between susceptibility to chronic periodontitis (CP) and the polymorphisms in the MMP-9 (gelatinase B) gene. METHODS: Using polymerase chain reaction with subsequent restriction analyses, MMP-9 -1562C/T and R+279Q variants were determined in 304 subjects (169 patients with CP, 76 with a mild to moderate form and 93 with severe generalized CP, and 135 age- and gender-matched unrelated control subjects). RESULTS: The distribution of the MMP-9 -1562C/T and R+279Q genotypes and alleles did not significantly differ between cases and controls. However, the frequency of the T variant at position -1562 was marginally higher in patients with severe disease compared to those with mild to moderate forms (P <0.05; P(corr) >0.05). In further analysis, the -1562T allele was associated with a severe form of CP in men (odds ratio: 3.87; 95% confidence interval: 1.40 to 10.65; P <0.01 and P(corr) <0.05 for allele; P <0.05 and P(corr) >0.05 for genotype) but not in women. CONCLUSION: These findings suggest that genetic polymorphisms of the MMP-9 gene are not associated with the susceptibility to CP in the Czech population; however, the promoter variant may influence the severity of the disease in men.

Department of Pathophysiology Faculty of Medicine Masaryk University Brno Czech Republic

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