Acceleration of wound healing with use of secretory leukocyte protease inhibitor could be seen by osteopontin expression in Rattus norvegicus post tooth extraction

Tooth extraction can be debilitating due to prolonged inflammation delaying wound healing. Secretory leukocyte protease inhibitor (SLPI) is a non-glycosylated proteomic material that inhibits protease enzymes and has anti-inflammatory properties accelerating wound healing. Increased osteoclast activity is marked by increased osteopontin expression (OPN) during bone resorption. OPN is a phosphorylated glycoprotein secreted by several immune cells. This study aims to determine OPN's expression as an osteoclast activity's overview in wound healing acceleration, following SLPI administration. Thirty-six Rattus norvegicus incisors were extracted and randomly divided into 6 groups by treatment type and duration of observation. SLPI was administered in Group 1 and 2 (12 heads respectively) on the socket of rat's teeth, followed by tight stitches. Group 2 additionally received bone graft. Control group K (12 heads) exclusively received tooth socket stitching. Two observations, each on 6 rats, were performed at 7 and 14 days. Subsequently, biopsies were performed and immunohisto-chemically stained with osteopontin antibodies. One-way Anova and Kruskal-Wallis tests showed statistically significant differences (p<0.05) between the groups. Results suggest that SLPI administration decreases osteoclast activity in alveolar bone resorption by decreasing the number of active osteoclasts and increasing the number of inactive ones in a Rattus model. Osteopontin expression can be used in overview of osteoclast's activity.