Salivary microbiota in individuals with different levels of caries experience.
This study compared salivary bacterial profiles in two groups having a 10-fold difference in levels of caries experience, as it was hypothesized that the composition of the salivary microbiota might associate with the levels of caries experience. Bacterial profiles in stimulated saliva samples from 85 individuals with low levels of caries experience (healthy group) and 79 individuals with high levels of caries experience (caries group) were analyzed by means of the Human Oral Microbiome Identification Next Generation Sequencing (HOMINGS) technique. Subsequently, saliva samples from caries-free individuals in the healthy group (n= 57) and the caries group (n= 31) were compared. A significantly higher α-diversity (p< 0.0001) and a twofold higher relative abundance ofNeisseria,Haemophilus, andFusobacteriumwere recorded in saliva samples from the healthy group compared with the caries group. Differences observed were more pronounced when limiting the analyses to caries-free individuals in each group. Data from this cross-sectional analysis suggest that low levels of caries experience might associate with a characteristic salivary bacterial composition different from that in individuals with high caries experience. Consequently, longitudinal studies are required to determine if the composition of the salivary microbiota might be a predictive factor of caries risk at the individual level.
Section for Periodontology, Microbiology, and Community Dentistry, Department of Odontology, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of Copenhagen , Copenhagen , Denmark.
Daniel
D
Belstrøm
Section for Periodontology, Microbiology, and Community Dentistry, Department of Odontology, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of Copenhagen , Copenhagen , Denmark.
Palle
P
Holmstrup
Department of Immunology and Microbiology, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of Copenhagen , Copenhagen , Denmark.
Nils-Erik
NE
Fiehn
Department of Medical Microbiology, Copenhagen University Hospital , Copenhagen , Denmark.
Nikolai
N
Kirkby
Department of Microbiology, The Forsyth Institute , Cambridge , MA , USA.
Alexis
A
Kokaras
Department of Microbiology, The Forsyth Institute, Cambridge, MA, USA; Department of Oral Medicine, Infection and Immunity, Harvard School of Dental Medicine, Boston, MA, USA.
Bruce J
BJ
Paster
Section for Oral Medicine, Department of Odontology, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Copenhagen , Copenhagen , Denmark.
Allan
A
Bardow
Caries susceptibility; HOMINGS; clinical studies/trials; microbiology; oral diagnosis