Prevalence of periodontal pathogens in dental plaque of children.
Porphyromonas gingivalis, Actinobacillus actinomycetemcomitans, and Tannerella forsythensis have been implicated as the main etiological agents of periodontal disease. The purpose of this work was to estimate the prevalence of these organisms in plaque from children without gingivitis (group 1; n = 65) and from those with gingivitis (group 2; n = 53). Extracted DNA from plaque was subjected to two rounds of PCR targeting the 16S rRNA gene using both universal primers and species-specific primers. The results were as follows: group 1, P. gingivalis, 49%; A. actinomycetemcomitans, 55%; and T. forsythensis, 65%; group 2, P. gingivalis, 47%; A. actinomycetemcomitans, 59%; and T. forsythensis, 45%. T. forsythensis was detected more frequently in children with no gingivitis than in those with gingivitis (P = 0.03). There was no significant difference between the two groups with respect to the presence of P. gingivalis or A. actinomycetemcomitans in either group (P > 0.05). Logistic regression analysis revealed that the odds of a patient having gingivitis were 2.3 times greater in the absence of T. forsythensis. In conclusion, the results of this study have shown that the three pathogens can be detected in the dental plaque of healthy children and of those with gingivitis and that T. forsythensis is associated with dental plaque at sites with no gingivitis.
Gafan
Gavin P
GP
Division of Microbial Diseases, Eastman Dental Institute, UCL, 256 Gray's Inn Rd., London WC1X 8LD, United Kingdom.
Lucas
Victoria S
VS
Roberts
Graham J
GJ
Petrie
Aviva
A
Wilson
Michael
M
Spratt
David A
DA
D016976:Aggregatibacter actinomycetemcomitans / Q000235:genetics / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D001439:Bacteroides / Q000235:genetics / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D001483:Base Sequence; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D017931:DNA Primers; D004269:DNA, Bacterial / Q000235:genetics / Q000302:isolation & purification; D003773:Dental Plaque / Q000382:microbiology*; D006801:Humans; D010518:Periodontitis / Q000382:microbiology*; D016133:Polymerase Chain Reaction / Q000379:methods; D016966:Porphyromonas gingivalis / Q000235:genetics / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D012016:Reference Values; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity
D017931:DNA Primers; D004269:DNA, Bacterial