THE AVAILABILITY OF BACTERIAL GROWTH FACTORS IN HUMAN GINGIVAL TISSUE

¹ Department of Bacteriology, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, Calif.

An auxanographic method has been adapted for the microbiologic assay of growth factor activity in extracts of human gingival tissues. For purposes of evaluation, inflamed specimens were compared with noninflamed specimens with respect to activities measurable as niacin, riboflavin, biotin, and pantothenic acid.

The higher percentage of negative assays of noninflamed specimens is not yet understood.

In general, inflamed specimens assayed considerably lower than noninflamed specimens when the negative specimens were not considered in the analysis. The differences described could not be accounted for as a function of edema fluid dilution.

The pantothenic acid assay results appeared anomalous. Little difference occurred between the mean of the inflamed samples and that of the noninflamed samples. Those inflamed samples, taken from areas having pockets 5 mm. or less in depth, however, assayed higher, whereas those from areas having pockets 6 mm. or more in depth assayed lower than did the noninflamed samples.