TNF and periodontitis: Interestingly, elevated salivary levels of pro-inflammatory cytokines including Tumor Necrosis Factor (TNF)-α [6–8] and Interleukin (IL)-1β [9–11] and molecules involved in tissue degradation such as Matrix Metalloproteinase (MMP)-8 and -9 [7,19,12–13] has been reported in saliva from patients with periodontitis.