Introduction: Laser Therapy (LT) has been employed for the treatment of Oral Mucositis (OM) due to its anti-inflammatory, analgesic and bio-stimulatory effects.
Objective: This pilot study investigated the effect of LT on the expression of DEFB1, DEFB4, DEFB103 genes encoding for the human β-defensins 1, 2 and 3.
Materials and method: TR146 epithelial cell line, used to mimic oral mucosa, was irradiated with different LT protocols. β-defensins gene expression was evaluated using TaqMan probes on Real- Time PCR platform.
Results and conclusion: In this cellular model LT decreased mRNA defensins' expression 30 minutes after irradiation but not 24 hours later, suggesting that LT is able to influence β -defensins production immediately after treatment, while its efficacy decreases over time.
Keywords: Innate immunity; gene expression; laser therapy; oral mucositis; real time PCR; β-defensins..
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