Diniz JMB, et al. - In this study involving patients with chronic liver disease (the case group) and healthy patients (the control group), researchers assessed the mRNA expression levels of the cytokines interferon-γ, tumour necrosis factor-α, interleukin (IL)-1β, IL-10, IL-6, VEGF, and AGT and the chemokine CCL2/MCP-1 in periapical interstitial fluid associated with root canal infections before and after the reduction of the bacterial load using a cleaning procedure. They found that periapical samples from chronic liver disease patients had relatively similar expression levels of cytokines, chemokines and angiogenic factors, compared with the responses from no-chronic liver disease patients. Sufficient immunologic ability was demonstrated by chronic liver disease patients. Liver impairment did not compromise the periapical immune response.