HGF and periodontitis: In this respect, different biomarkers in saliva have been found in higher concentrations in patients with periodontitis than in healthy subjects as interleukin (IL)-1β, S100A8, S100A9, S100A12, matrix metalloproteinase (MMP)-8, and hepatocyte growth factor (HGF), colony-stimulating factor-1 (CSF-1) [2], interleukin (IL)-6, tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-alpha), osteoprotegerin [3], and prostaglandin E2 (PGE2) [4], malondialdehyde (MDA), nitric oxide (NO), total oxidant status (TOS), and 8-hydroxy-deoxyguanosine [5].