Increased levels of soluble CD14 in sera of periodontitis patients

Soluble CD14 (sCD14) mediates the response to lipopolysaccharide (LPS) in c ells lacking membrane-bound CD14. We determined sCD14 concentrations in the sera of 38 periodontitis patients and 25 healthy controls by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. The sCD14 levels in the sera of patients with periodo ntitis a ere significantly higher than those of healthy subjects and decrea sed after treatment. Enhanced levels of sCD14 in serum map contribute to th e host response to LPS in periodontitis. Furthermore, we showed in vitro th at addition of LPS enhanced the release of sCD14 by monoblastic U937 cells treated with 1 alpha,25-dihydroxyvitamin D-3. Thus, increased sCD14 levels in periodontitis patients may be due to chronic exposure to LPS.