OBJECTIVETo investigate interleukin-33 (IL-33) in the arterial vascular endothelium of rabbits infected with Porphyromonas gingivalis (P. gingivalis), and to explore the relationship between P. gingivalis and atherosclerosis.

METHODSA total of 24 rabbits were randomly divided into control and experimental groups. The experimental group received intravenous injection of P. gingivalis once a week for 12 weeks to establish a coronary atherosclerosis model. The rabbits in the control group were injected with equal volume of physiological saline. All the rabbits were killed after 13 weeks. The IL-33 expression levels in the arterial vascular endothelium of the rabbits were detected through immunohistochemistry, reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction, and Western blot analysis. The effects of P. gingivalis on the IL-33 expression in the arterial vascular endothelium of the rabbits were analyzed.

RESULTSThe relative expression levels of IL-33 mRNA in the vascular endothelium cells were 58.244±2.407, and the relative expression levels of IL-33 protein were 1.863±0.171 in the experimental group. The relative expression levels of IL-33 mRNA were 3.143±0.805, and the relative expression levels of IL-33 protein were 0.537±
0.028 in the control group. The expression levels of IL-33 mRNA and protein of vascular endothelium cells in the experimental group were significantly higher than those of the control group (P<0.01).

CONCLUSIONSP. gingivalis infection promotes IL-33 expression levels in vascular endothelial cells and may regulate the occurrence and development of atherosclerosis.
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