Oral Wash 16S Microbiome Sequencing in Patients with Abdominal Aortic Aneurysm and Atherosclerotic Disease
The goal of this study is to better understand the relationship between the oral microbiome and abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA), a life-threatening vascular disease for which the biological mechanisms remain incompletely understood. By comparing the oral microbial communities of patients with AAA to those of patients with advanced atherosclerotic disease, this research seeks to identify microbial signatures associated with aneurysmal disease beyond those attributable to cardiovascular disease alone. These findings will provide insight into the potential role of the oral microbiome in vascular inflammation and aneurysm biology while generating new hypotheses for future mechanistic investigation. Ultimately, this work aims to establish a foundation for larger, longitudinal, and multiomic studies that may improve our understanding of AAA pathogenesis and identify novel opportunities for disease prevention, diagnosis, and treatment.