Exploring the association between the number of remaining teeth and oral microbiome in the elderly using 16S rDNA sequencing technology
LIAN Qi-si
LI Yu-xiao
CHENG Xing-qun
WU Hong-kun
Abstract：Objective To study the correlation between number of remaining teeth and oral microbiome in the elderly by 16S rDNA high-throughput sequencing.Methods Thirty elderly residents of Chengdu aged≥80 years were selected.All participants were categorized into two groups based on their remaining tooth count:a high remaining tooth count group(20 or more teeth),consisting of 15 individuals,and a low remaining tooth count group(fewer than 20 teeth),also comprising 15 individuals.Buccal mucosa samples from the high number of remaining teeth group were designated as the HNRT group(n=30),and buccal mucosa samples from the low number of remaining teeth group were designated as the LNRT group(n=30).Saliva samples from the high number of remaining teeth group were recorded as the HNoRT group(n=14),and saliva samples from the low number of remaining teeth group were recorded as the LNoRT group(n=14).Buccal mucosa and saliva samples were collected,and 16S rDNA sequencing technology was used to analyze microbial diversity and abundance,aiming to identify differential bacterial markers.Results The results of alpha diversity analysis and beta diversity analysis showed that there was no statistical difference in the diversity of the flora between the two groups(P＞0.05).The results of species annotation showed that at the phyla level,the main dominant species of the two groups were Firmicutes,Proteobacteria,Bacteroidetes,and Actinomycetes;the genus level mainly included Streptococcus,Neisseria,Rothia,and Haemophilus.LEfSe analysis found that the species with statistical differences between the buccal mucosal sample groups were Pseudonocardiaceae,Phyllobacteriaceae,Actinobacillus,Aggregatibacter,Desulfovibrio,Pelomonas.Species with statistically significant differences in saliva samples included Deinococcales,Deinococcaceae,Staphylococcaceae,Catonella,Pelomonas,Deinococcus,Staphylococcus.Conclusion The number of remaining teeth is associated with alterations in the oral microbiota,potentially mediated through dietary patterns that influence the relative abundance of specific bacterial taxa.In individuals with a lower number of remaining teeth,certain gastrointestinal-derived bacterial species were observed outside the core oral microbiota,suggesting that tooth loss may be linked to aberrant colonization by non-resident gastrointestinal bacteria.
Keywords：number of remaining teethelderlyoral microbiomehigh-throughput sequencing
Publication Date：2025-09-20
Online Publishing Date：2025-09-24(First online date of this platform, not the publication date of the document)
Pages：8( 331-338 )