Immunophenotypic quantification of M1 and M2 macrophage polarization in radicular cysts of primary and permanent teeth

Aim To quantify M1 and M2 macrophages in radicular cysts of permanent (n = 14 cases) and primary teeth (n = 15 cases). Methodology All patients who attended the School of Dentistry Ribeirao Preto, University of Sao Paulo with primary teeth or permanent molars that were scheduled for extraction and fulfilled the inclusion criteria: absence of pain; presence/absence of fistulae; extensive coronal destruction due to caries lesions without possibility of restoration; pulp necrosis; radiographically visible apical periodontitis; and no previous treatment, were selected. The radicular cysts were removed and subsequently submitted to histopathologic analysis in order to classify the type of inflammatory infiltrate. In addition, CD68 (M1+, M2+) and CD163 (M1-, M2+) markers were quantified through an immunohistochemistry analysis. The data acquired were submitted to a Mann-Whitney test, with a 5% significance level. Results The patients had a mean age of 38.6 years and 5.9 years for cysts associated with permanent and primary teeth, respectively. In the histopathological analysis, no significant difference (P = 0.87) was found between radicular cysts in primary and permanent teeth regarding the intensity of the chronic inflammatory infiltrate. A significantly greater prevalence of M2 macrophages (P < 0.05) was observed in the lesions of both permanent and primary teeth, even though both M1 and M2 macrophages were detected. No significant difference (P > 0.05) was found for M1 and M2 macrophages associated with the cysts of primary and permanent teeth. Conclusion M1 and M2 macrophages were present in radicular cysts associated with primary and permanent teeth, with a greater quantity of M2 cells. The immunophenotypic quantification of M1 and M2 macrophage polarization in radicular cysts associated with primary and permanent teeth were similar.