Research on the effects of psychological stress on tissue microcirculation in experimental periodontitis
GUO Yanxia
ZHU Yan
WANG Liuxin
LIU Jia
ZHAO Yajuan
LI Qiang
Abstract：Objective To explore whether psychological stress exacerbates microcirculatory dysfunction in experimental periodontitis and to elucidate its potential role in periodontal tissue destruction.Methods Sixty-four male SD rats were randomly divided into four groups(n=16 per group),i.e.control group(C),experimental periodontitis group(CP),psychological stress group(PS),and experimental periodontitis+psychological stress group(CPPS).Experimental periodontitis was induced using silk ligature,and psychological stress was established using restraint stress.After the experiment,behavioral changes were assessed using the open field test.Serum hormone levels were measured by ELISA.Micro-CT and HE staining were used to observe periodontal tissue morphology.Transmission electron microscopy was employed to examine changes in the vascular ultrastructure of gingiva with periodontitis.Evans blue staining and laser speckle imaging were employed to evaluate vascular permeability and blood perfusion in periodontal tissues,respectively.Results 3 weeks of restraint stress,rats in the PS and CPPS groups exhibited significantly increased anxiety-like behavior(P<0.05)and elevated serum levels of corticosterone(CORT)and adrenocorticotropic hormone(ACTH)(P<0.05),confirming successful induction of psychological stress.In comparison to the C group,rats in the CP and CPPS groups showed significantly increased distance from the alveolar crest to the cemento-enamel junction and attachment loss(P<0.05).Ultrastructurally,vessels in the CP group displayed irregular endothelial shapes,organelle injury within the cytoplasm,and either discontinuous basement membranes or frequent endothelial hyperplasia,whereas vascular ultrastructural lesions were more severe in the CPPS group these.and the addition of psychological stress led to further dysregulation of these microcirculatory parameters compared with periodontitis alone(P<0.05).Conclusion Psychological stress aggravates microcirculatory disturbances in periodontitis by exacerbating the ultrastructure of blood vessels,increasing vascular permeability,and inducing abnormal blood perfusion,These alterations may,at least in part,mediate the promotive effect of psychological stress on periodontal tissue destruction.
Keywords：psychological stressperiodontitismicrocirculationlaser specklemicro criculatory disturbance
Publication Date：2025-12-28
Online Publishing Date：2026-01-23(First online date of this platform, not the publication date of the document)
Pages：8( 683-690 )