title: Use of 16S ribosomal RNA gene analyses to characterize the bacterial signature associated with poor oral health in West Virginia.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  West Virginia has the worst oral health in the United States, but the reasons for this are unclear. This pilot study explored the etiology of this disparity using culture-independent analyses to identify bacterial species associated with oral disease.
  
  
  METHODS
  Bacteria in subgingival plaque samples from twelve participants in two independent West Virginia dental-related studies were characterized using 16S rRNA gene sequencing and Human Oral Microbe Identification Microarray (HOMIM) analysis. Unifrac analysis was used to characterize phylogenetic differences between bacterial communities obtained from plaque of participants with low or high oral disease, which was further evaluated using clustering and Principal Coordinate Analysis.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Statistically different bacterial signatures (P<0.001) were identified in subgingival plaque of individuals with low or high oral disease in West Virginia based on 16S rRNA gene sequencing. Low disease contained a high frequency of Veillonella and Streptococcus, with a moderate number of Capnocytophaga. High disease exhibited substantially increased bacterial diversity and included a large proportion of Clostridiales cluster bacteria (Selenomonas, Eubacterium, Dialister). Phylogenetic trees constructed using 16S rRNA gene sequencing revealed that Clostridiales were repeated colonizers in plaque associated with high oral disease, providing evidence that the oral environment is somehow influencing the bacterial signature linked to disease.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Culture-independent analyses identified an atypical bacterial signature associated with high oral disease in West Virginians and provided evidence that the oral environment influenced this signature. Both findings provide insight into the etiology of the oral disparity in West Virginia.
authors.affiliation: Department of Microbiology, Immunology and Cell Biology, West Virginia University, Morgantown, WV, USA. jolson@hsc.wvu.edu
authors.forename: Joan C
authors.initials: JC
authors.lastname: Olson
authors.forename: Christopher F
authors.initials: CF
authors.lastname: Cuff
authors.forename: Slawomir
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Lukomski
authors.forename: Ewa
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Lukomska
authors.forename: Yeremi
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Canizales
authors.forename: Bei
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Wu
authors.forename: Richard J
authors.initials: RJ
authors.lastname: Crout
authors.forename: John G
authors.initials: JG
authors.lastname: Thomas
authors.forename: Daniel W
authors.initials: DW
authors.lastname: McNeil
authors.forename: Robert J
authors.initials: RJ
authors.lastname: Weyant
authors.forename: Mary L
authors.initials: ML
authors.lastname: Marazita
authors.forename: Bruce J
authors.initials: BJ
authors.lastname: Paster
authors.forename: Thomas
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Elliott
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D015373:Bacterial Typing Techniques; D016000:Cluster Analysis; D004269:DNA, Bacterial / Q000032:analysis*; D003773:Dental Plaque / Q000382:microbiology; D006801:Humans; D008875:Middle Aged; D009059:Mouth Diseases / Q000382:microbiology*; D020411:Oligonucleotide Array Sequence Analysis; D010802:Phylogeny; D010865:Pilot Projects; D025341:Principal Component Analysis; D012336:RNA, Ribosomal, 16S / Q000235:genetics*; D014076:Tooth Diseases / Q000382:microbiology*; D014903:West Virginia / Q000453:epidemiology; D055815:Young Adult
chemical_list: D004269:DNA, Bacterial; D012336:RNA, Ribosomal, 16S