Oral lichen planus (OLP) is a chronic inflammatory disease of the oral mucosa which is considered by the World Health Organization (WHO) as a premalignant condition. One step in malignant development is so called epithelial mesenchymal transition (EMT), a process whereby epithelial cells acquire mesenchymal characteristics. A factor known to induce EMT is the transforming growth factor-β (TGF-β), which uses the Smad proteins as mediators for its signaling. The aim of this study was to compare the expression of Smad 3 in Oral Lichen Planus and normal oral mucosa. This descriptive analytic study was performed on 30 patients with OLP (21 women and 9 men with mean age of 45.23± 2.44 years) and 20 normal oral mucosa (14 women and 6 men with mean age of 46.95± 2.21 years). The samples were studied by immunohistochemical staining. Data were analyzed with paired T-test and Wilcoxon test by SPSS software. Expression of Smad3 in OLP samples and normal oral mucosa was different. This difference was statistically significant (P<0.001). The apparently higher expression of Smad 3 in oral lichen planus compared to normal oral mucosa might help to discuss its higher potential for malignant transition.

Keywords: Oral lichen planus, smad 3, transforming growth factor β

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