title: Oral bacteria in placental tissues: increased molecular detection in pregnant periodontitis patients.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  The objective of this study was to identify the DNA of oral bacteria in placental samples from women with and without periodontitis who had or had not had preterm births and/or low birthweight (PB/LBW) neonates.
  
  
  METHODS
  Data were gathered from 57 puerperal women in relation to socio-demographic, gynaecological, and periodontal variables and to placental histomorphology. Fifty-seven biopsies, 28 from mothers with periodontitis, were taken aseptically from preterm placentas (n = 36) and from full-term placentas (n = 21). Total DNA was extracted, and the presence of 15 oral bacteria was assessed using Nested-PCR.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The placentas from women with periodontitis showed a higher prevalence of periodontopathogens compared to those from women without periodontitis (P = 0.009). Samples showed low prevalences of Actinomyces israelii, Parvimonas micra and Tannerella forsythia. An association was found between Eikenella corrodens in placenta and periodontitis (P = 0.002). The most ubiquitous bacterium, Fusobacterium nucleatum, was more prevalent in mothers with periodontitis and PB/LBW (P = 0.033). Porphyromonas gingivalis, Treponema denticola, Prevotella intermedia and Aggregatibacter actinomycetemcomitans were not detected.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  These results, along with previous findings, show that oral bacteria may be normally present in the placenta, however, the levels of certain oral pathogens in the placenta would highly depend on the mother's periodontal state.
authors.affiliation: Microbiology Laboratory, Dentaid Research Center, Cerdanyola del Valles, Barcelona, Spain.
authors.forename: V
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Blanc
authors.affiliation: Pathology Department, School of Medicine, University of Granada, Granada, Spain.
authors.forename: F
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: O'Valle
authors.affiliation: Periodontology Department, School of Dentistry, University of Granada, Granada, Spain.
authors.forename: E
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Pozo
authors.affiliation: Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, Virgen de las Nieves University Hospital, Granada, Spain.
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Puertas
authors.affiliation: Microbiology Laboratory, Dentaid Research Center, Cerdanyola del Valles, Barcelona, Spain.
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: León
authors.affiliation: Periodontology Department, School of Dentistry, University of Granada, Granada, Spain.
authors.forename: F
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Mesa
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D016124:Eikenella corrodens / Q000302:isolation & purification; D005260:Female; D016967:Fusobacterium nucleatum / Q000302:isolation & purification; D006801:Humans; D007230:Infant, Low Birth Weight; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D010518:Periodontitis / Q000382:microbiology*; D010920:Placenta / Q000382:microbiology*; D011247:Pregnancy; D011251:Pregnancy Complications, Infectious / Q000382:microbiology*; D047928:Premature Birth / Q000382:microbiology*
keywords: PCR-Nested; infant low birthweight; oral bacteria; periodontitis; preterm birth