# Inflammasome regulation underlying sexual dimorphism in periodontitis

> **NIH NIH R01** · UNIV OF NORTH CAROLINA CHAPEL HILL · 2024 · $709,599

## Abstract

ABSTRACT
Periodontitis is a male-dominant, heterogeneous, inflammatory disease of the bone and tissues
supporting the tooth. It is one of the most prevalent non-communicable chronic diseases, with
~50% prevalence in the American population. Currently, there are no adjuvant therapies available
to treat the 20-25% of “hyper-inflammatory” patients that progress to tooth loss despite
appropriate standard of care. In support of this current proposal, inflammasome modulation has
been proposed to treat several inflammatory diseases. Inflammasome is required for processing
of pro-interleukin (IL)-1, pro-IL-18, and Gasdermin-D into their mature, functional forms. Despite
the common knowledge that IL-1 is sexually dimorphic and a marker for periodontal
inflammation, its role as a direct driver of disease development in both females and males is not
clear. We find that inflammasome activation has both a protective and destructive effect on
periodontal tissue that is differentially regulated between the sexes. Our data suggest the
existence of sex-based distinct pathways of periodontal bone loss. This study will expand our
current knowledge on the role of inflammasomes in periodontal inflammation and tissue
destruction in females and males. We propose to build upon our findings to develop the below
aims: Aim 1: Define the impact of biological sex in inflammasome activation during periodontal
disease development and progression. Aim 2: Define the relationship between inflammasomes
and periodontal tissue repair. Aim 3: To use a new strategy to target inflammasomes for
preventing murine periodontitis.
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## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10828852
- **Project number:** 5R01DE032830-02
- **Recipient organization:** UNIV OF NORTH CAROLINA CHAPEL HILL
- **Principal Investigator:** Julie Teresa Marchesan
- **Activity code:** R01 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2024
- **Award amount:** $709,599
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2023-05-01 → 2028-01-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10828852

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10828852, Inflammasome regulation underlying sexual dimorphism in periodontitis (5R01DE032830-02). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-23 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10828852. Licensed CC0.

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