The complement system is a network of interacting fluid-phase and cell surface-associated molecules that trigger, amplify, and regulate immune and inflammatory signaling pathways. Dysregulation of this finely balanced network can destabilize host-microbe homeostasis and cause inflammatory tissue damage. Evidence from clinical and animal model-based studies suggests that complement is implicated in the pathogenesis of periodontitis, a polymicrobial community-induced chronic inflammatory disease that destroys the tooth-supporting tissues. This review discusses molecular mechanisms of complement involvement in the dysbiotic transformation of the periodontal microbiome and the resulting destructive inflammation, culminating in loss of periodontal bone support. These mechanistic studies have additionally identified potential therapeutic targets. In this regard, interventional studies in preclinical models have provided proof-of-concept for using complement inhibitors for the treatment of human periodontitis.

Complement involvement in periodontitis: molecular mechanisms and rational therapeutic approaches

Periodontal status was investigated in 600 adult dentitions belonging to the identified osteological collections curated at the University of Coimbra, Portugal. These collections date to a point temporally intermediate between the large epidemiological studies of the 20th century and archaeological collections that antedate the 19th century. The aim of this study is to compare periodontal data derived from contemporary samples with statistics compiled from epidemiological studies to determine if factors such as age-at-death, sex, and tooth type are essential or not to account for in future archaeological studies of periodontitis. Periodontal disease status was assessed based on the textural and architectural variations of the interdental septum and the extent of bone loss. Overall, the frequency of periodontitis within the Coimbra collections is 73.8%. Men were more susceptible to periodontal disease than women. Gingivitis was widespread in the younger age groups. Destructive periodontitis was observed early in adulthood, rising steadily with age. The most susceptible sites to periodontal breakdown were located in the posterior region of the upper jaw. Some variation in reported frequencies of periodontitis was found in epidemiological reports, which might result from variation in methods for identifying the pathology, differences in the age composition of the samples examined, variation in oral hygiene and/or diet, or some other factors. Regarding the pattern of distribution of periodontal disease, Coimbra results were similar to comparable modern epidemiological surveys, making clear the importance of considering sex, age, and oral distribution of periodontitis in future archaeological studies.

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Periodontal disease in a Portuguese identified skeletal sample from the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries.

The chief focus of this chapter is the dentition, with reviews of associated structures where relevant. Dental development, including the dentin and enamel, is discussed in the first section, followed by disturbances in the dentin and enamel in the second section. The third section looks at the identification of oral disease, including caries, alveolar lesions, antemortem tooth loss (AMTL), and periodontal disease. The fourth section focuses on interpreting oral health, particularly in the context of sex differences and major demographic transitions. The fifth discusses dental chemistry in terms of paleodietary reconstruction, breastfeeding and weaning, stress and disease, and finally mobility and migration. The final section examines dental calculus in the context of microparticles and then chemical analyses of calculus, with aDNA and protein analyses of dental calculus also reviewed.

The dentition: Development, disturbances, disease, diet and chemistry

Come, tell me how you live. This is more than the title of Agatha Christies mesmerizing account of life with her archaeologist husband Max Mallowan and her curiosity about other cultures and past times.1 It is also the question skeletal biologists ask of every individual and population they study. Such inquiries invariably lead to investigations of health and diet, stress and violence, physical activity, social status, and how we cared for and venerated people in the past. These are things that most often only a skeletal biologist can determine, although they must work closely with archaeological data to render a complete answer. Like Agatha Christie, skeletal biologists are mistakenly thought to be focused on death, yet it is clearly life and behavior that is the driving motivation behind our work.

Introduction: New Directions in the Skeletal Biology of Greece

The present research offers the rare opportunity to compare the human remains of an ancient (3rd-1st century BC) population from the North Cemetery of Demetrias, Thessaly, and a modern (late 19th-late 20th
century AD) one, the Athens Collection, from various cemeteries in Athens, Greece Its main purpose is to explore the biological similarities and differences between the two populations and among the subsets within each one of them, as these are defined by biosocial parameters, namely sex/gender, and purely social, that is socioeconomic status An attempt is made to associate biological with social variation through oral pathology and wear and address questions as to whether the health status of burial populations can indeed reflect socioeconomic conditions and status in life
Data analysis produced very conclusive differences between the two populations, and among sex/gender and socioeconomic status groups and suggests that dental caries, antemortem tooth loss, occlusal wear and dental enamel defects are very sensitive indicators of social position and conditions in general Comparisons between the ancient and the contemporary population reveal that environmental, cultural and socioeconomic circumstances did not have the same effect on all oral conditions Moreover, variations between the sexes are quite evident in Demetrias and they appear to reflect the inferior social position of both women and female infants/children In contrast, in Athens, there is no evidence to indicate gender discrimination or favourable treatment of male infants Social class differentiation manifests itself in the distribution of oral pathology and wear between status groups in both assemblages, but it is clearly more pronounced in Demetrias Finally, this thesis contributes towards a comprehensive understanding of the relationship between biological and socioeconomic status and of the Hellenistic biocultural history It also emphasises that analysis of human remains should be carefully contextualised culturally, archaeologically and historically

Ancient versus modern health patterns : biological and socioeconomic status differences and similarities between a Hellenistic and a 20th century human burial population from Greece

This study investigates the incidence of periodontitis in a Mycenaean population unearthed at the cemetery of Aghia Triada (West Peloponnese, Greece) during the 1989–1997 field season. The material consists of 172 dry skulls. Demographic parameters of sex and age were difficult to be assigned due to the bad state of preservation of the skeletal material. The ratio was 50 males, 48 females, 65 unidentified and 9 children, and we estimated an average age of 38 years. In this work we used traditional and modern methods to determine the incidence of periodontitis in the archeological human dental bone. We also recorded other dental diseases, such as ante mortem tooth loss, caries and attrition. The results showed that periodontitis has affected 35% of the jaws. A notable percentage of the individuals — 24% — lost three or more teeth during their lifetime and a total 53% of the population had extracted teeth before death. This paper points out that the ancient jaws present a high proportion of ante-mortem tooth loss, attrition and deep caries, whereas the frequency of periodontitis does not seem to differ from that of other prehistoric samples.

M G Tsilivakos

Papers

Periodontal disease in the Mycenean (1450–1150 BC) population of Aghia Triada, W. Peloponnese, Greece