Mitotic activity of human oral epithelium exposed to 30 per cent hydrogen peroxide
Gargiulo, A.W.; Wentz, F.M.; Orban, B.
Oral Surgery Oral Medicine and Oral Pathology 14: 474-492
1961
ISSN/ISBN: 0030-4220 PMID: 13703658 Accession: 025022797
Mitotic indices for the epithelium of normal gingival tissues was first established for two different age groups, a group 25 years old with an index of 0.79 and the older group with an average of 56 and an index of 1.69. When altered by addition of 30% hydrogen peroxide applied to the tissues; three applications a week for thirty days, the index in the younger group jumped to 6.50 and in the older group to 8.80. The overall cell density of the experimental group was decreased when compared with the control group. After a single exposure to the peroxide there was an apparent prolongation of the mitotic period, especially in the pro-phase. This seems to indicate that the mitotic process is actually retarded by hydrogen peroxide and that the mitotic index is not a true reflection of mitotic activity. Therefore it is only relative to the circumstances under which it is used and evaluated.