Research progress on the association between periodontitis and the aging population

Abstract

Recently, there has been a growing focus on investigating the influence of periodontitis on the aging population. There is epidemiological evidence that indicates periodontitis is associated with mortality, and it has been shown to accelerate the biological processes of aging. However, the precise mechanism by which periodontitis accelerates the process of the aging population remains to be elucidated. This paper reviews relevant research results and finds that periodontitis may be associated with accelerated aging and increased mortality through the following mechanisms: 1) the inflammatory mediators produced by periodontitis are released into the bloodstream and promote “inflammageing”, which accelerates aging through activation of the NF-κB signaling pathway and the senescence-associated secretory phenotype; 2) periodontal pathogens can promote the aging process in the following three ways: ① periodontal pathogens and bacterial products promote “inflammageing” through blood circulation, and they lead to abnormal changes in SIRT1 and mTOR, important aging markers in the blood, which induces mitochondrial dysfunction and accelerates aging; ② porphyromonas gingivalis overactivates the Akt/FoxO1 pathway to directly promote the aging of dendritic cells and produce exosomes that transmit and amplify paracrine immunosenescence; and ③ periodontal pathogens are ectopically colonized in the intestinal tract and lead to gut dysbiosis, thus indirectly accelerating the aging process.

Keywords

• periodontitis|aging|population mortality|inflammageing|periodontal pathogen|immunosenescence|dendritic cells|senescence associated secretory phenotype|gut dysbiosis