Fig. 6: G3@SeHANs inhibit cellular proinflammatory response in ligature-induced periodontitis.

a H&E staining of periodontal tissues on day 15 after G3@SeHAN administration. Scale bars, 100 μm. Inflammatory cell infiltration into the epithelium and bone destruction were evident in the untreated model, whereas G3@SeHAN treatment prevented these pathological changes. (E, epithelium; A, alveolar bone; T, tooth; yellow line indicates epithelial basement membrane; red line indicates alveolar bone crest). b TRAP/ALP staining of periodontal tissues on day 15 after G3@SeHAN administration. Scale bars, 100 μm. The number of TRAP⁺ osteoclasts (red arrows) in the untreated group was higher than in the DNA scavenger-treated groups. c IHC staining of TLR9 in periodontal tissues on day 15 after G3@SeHAN administration. Scale bars, 100 μm. TLR9 expression increased significantly in the untreated group; treatment with G3@SeHAN or PAMAM-G3 reduced TLR9 expression. Images (a–c) were representative of three independent mice. d Expression of TLR9 in the epithelium of periodontal tissues. Data are means ± SEM; n = 4 samples per group; *P < 0.05, **P < 0.01, ***P < 0.001, ****P < 0.0001 by one-way ANOVA with Tukey’s multiple comparison test (P = 0.0035 between Normal and Untreated, P = 0.0171 between Normal and G3@SeHANs). (e–i) TNF-α and IL-6 levels in periodontal tissues, and relative gene expression of Rela, Tnf, and Il6 in periodontal tissues. Data are means ± SEM; n = 3 samples per group; *P < 0.05, **P < 0.01, ***P < 0.001, ****P < 0.0001 by one-way ANOVA with Tukey’s multiple comparison test (e, P < 0.0001 between Normal and Untreated, P < 0.0001 between Untreated and PAMAM-G3, P < 0.0001 between Untreated and G3@SeHANs; f P = 0.0010 between Normal and Untreated, P = 0.0022 between Untreated and PAMAM-G3, P = 0.0018 between Untreated and G3@SeHANs; g P = 0.0315 between Normal and Untreated, P = 0.0411 between Untreated and PAMAM-G3; i P < 0.0001 between Normal and Untreated, P < 0.0001 between Untreated and PAMAM-G3, P < 0.0001 between Untreated and G3@SeHANs, P < 0.0001 between PAMAM-G3 and G3@SeHANs).