CD4 and Hypertension: To substantiate our findings, we leveraged an angiotensin II-infused animal model of ligature-induced periodontitis (LIP), confirming the contributory role of Filifactor alocis—a selectively analyzed subgingival bridge species—in exacerbating hypertension and upregulating the frequency of renal CD4+IFNγ+ and CD8+IFNγ+ T cells.