Hydrolytic enzymes in endodontic exudates

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to investigate the presence of several hydrolytic enzymes in fluid from necrotic teeth with radiographic evidence of periapical pathology. A comparison was made with clinically normal pulpal tissue. Fluid samples from twenty necrotic teeth with periapical pathology were aspirated, smeared on microscope slides, and histochemically stained for alkaline and acid phosphatase and B-glucuronidase. Fresh frozen sect ions of clinically normal pulpal tissue from ten teeth requiring elective endodontic treatment were similarly stained for the same hydroltyic enzymes. The histochemical methods included the Azo Dye Method (alkaline phosphatase), the Lead Salt Technique (acid phosphatase), and the Smith-Fishman Method (B-glucuronidase). The results of this study showed that detectable levels of alkaline and acid phosphatase and B- glucuronidase were found to be present in each of the samples of fluid exudate examined. The three hydrolytic enzymes were also demonstrated in each of the control pulps examined. The relative intensities of enzymatic activity differed appreciably. Alkaline phosphatase consistently demonstrated significantly less activity than did acid phosphatase or B-glucuronidase in the fluid samples. In clinically normal pulpal tissue, on the other hand, alkaline phosphatase activity was extremely intense while the activities of the two lysosomal enzymes were significantly weaker. On the basis of these results, a definite relationship between lysosomal enzyme activity and pulpal and periapical pathology has thus been suggested.