This observational clinical study included 23 adult hospitalized patients admitted to Universitas Indonesia Hospital with PCR-confirmed COVID-19, while 6 non-COVID-19 participants come to periodontal clinic were included as control. Using real time-PCR (qPCR) and gingival crevicular fluids (GCF) samples from COVID-19 patients with and without diabetes and periodontitis, we assessed the mRNA expression of angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2), IL-6, IL-8, complement C3, and LL-37 as well as the relative proportion of Porphyromonas gingivalis, Fusobacterium nucleatum, and Veillonella parvula to represent the dysbiosis condition in periodontal microenvironment. All analyses were performed to determine their relationship. Results: ACE2 mRNA expression was detected in the GCF of periodontitisCOVID-19 patients with and without diabetes. However, only periodontitisCOVID-19 patients with diabetes showed a positive relationship between ACE2 expression and inflammatory conditions in the periodontal microenvironment. In addition, the interplay between pro-inflammatory cytokine (IL-6) and complement C3 could be used as a predictor of the severity of periodontal inflammation in COVID-19 patients with diabetes. Conclusion: The study data show that the SARS-CoV-2 entry gene is expressed in the GCF of patients with COVID-19, and its expression correlates with inflammatory markers. 

Endang W Bachtiar as completed her Ph.D RMIT from University Melbourne AUSTRALIA.  She is the head of Oral Sciences Research Center in Universitas Indonesia She has over 100 publications that have been cited over 599 times, and her publication h-index SCOPUS 14. She has been serving as reviewer of several reputed journals. She also has more than 10 PATEN granted