Recurrent oral ulcers and severe periodontal diseases in patients with quantitative or qualitative neutrophil defects highlight the important role of neutrophils in maintaining oral mucosal barrier ...homeostasis. Recurrent aphthous stomatitis (RAS) is a common oral mucosal disease affecting up to 25% of the population, yet its etiopathogenesis remains unclear, and management is unsatisfactory. This review aims to gain insight into the pathogenesis of RAS.
This narrative review examines the characteristics of oral and blood neutrophils, the associations between neutrophil defects and the occurrence of oral ulcers, and the evidence for the involvement of neutrophils in RAS. To conduct the review, relevant literature was searched in PubMed and Google Scholar, which was then thoroughly reviewed and critically appraised.
Neutropenia, specifically a decrease in the number of oral neutrophils, impaired extravasation, and defective ROS production appear to be associated with oral ulcers, while defects in granule enzymes or NETosis are unlikely to have a link to oral ulcers. The review of the histopathology of RAS shows that neutrophils are concentrated in the denuded area but are latecomers to the scene and early leavers. However, the evidence for the involvement of neutrophils in the pathogenesis of RAS is inconsistent, leading to the proposal of two different scenarios involving either impaired or hyperactive neutrophils in the pathogenesis of RAS.
Although mice have long served as an animal model for periodontitis, information on the composition of their indigenous oral microbiota is limited. The aim of the current study was to characterize ...mouse oral bacterial flora by applying extensive parallel pyrosequencing using the latest model pyrosequencer, a Roche/454 Genome Sequencer FLX Titanium. In addition, the effect of Toll-like receptor (TLR) 2 deficiency on oral microbiota was evaluated.
Eight oral bacterial communities of wild-type (n = 4) and TLR2 knock-out (n = 4) C57BL/6 mice were characterized by analyzing 80,046 reads of 16S rRNA genes obtained by pyrosequencing. Excluding the PCR primers, the average length of each sequencing product was 443 bp. The average species richness of the murine oral bacterial communities was estimated to be about 200, but the communities were dominated by only two main phyla and several species. Therefore, the bacterial communities were relatively simple. The bacterial composition of the murine oral microbiota was significantly different from that of humans, and the lack of TLR2 had a negligible effect on the murine oral microbiota.
Pyrosequencing using the Roche/454 FLX Titanium successfully characterized mouse oral bacterial communities. The relatively simple oral bacterial communities of mice were not affected by TLR2 deficiency. These findings will provide a basis for future studies on the role of periodontal pathogens in the murine model of periodontitis.
Periodontitis is caused by dysbiosis of subgingival plaque that results in increased bacterial invasion into gingival tissues. Although shifts in subgingival microbiota from healthy to periodontitis ...have been well characterized, the characteristics of bacterial communities located within gingival tissues have not been studied. To characterize microbiota within the tissues of periodontal lesions in comparison with plaque microbiota, gingival tissues and subgingival plaque were obtained from the same tooth of patients with periodontitis (n = 7). A pyrosequencing analysis of the 16S rRNA gene revealed that species richness and diversity were not significantly different between the two communities. However, inter-subject variation in intra-tissue communities was smaller than that in plaque communities. Intra-tissue communities were characterized by decreased Firmicutes and increased Fusobacteria, compared with the plaque communities. Particularly, Fusobacterium nucleatum and Porphyromonas gingivalis were highly increased within tissues, comprising 15-40% of the total bacteria. Furthermore, biofilm formation within the tissue was observed by Alcian Blue staining and atomic force microscopy, where degradation of fibers was prominent. Taken together, bacteria formed complex biofilm communities within gingival tissues that may serve as a reservoir for persistent infection. This novel finding may instigate new research into therapeutic strategies to treat periodontitis.
To better understand the impact of gut dysbiosis on four autoimmune diseases Sjögren's syndrome (SS), systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), rheumatoid arthritis (RA), and multiple sclerosis (MS), this ...review investigated the altered gut bacteria in each disease and the shared ones among the four diseases. The enriched gut bacteria shared by three of the four autoimmune diseases were
,
, and
, which are associated with autoantibody production or activation of Th17 cells in immune-related diseases. On the other hand,
comprises depleted gut bacteria shared by patients with SLE, MS, and SS, which is associated with various anti-inflammatory activities. The indexes of gut dysbiosis, defined as the number of altered gut bacterial taxa divided by the number of studies in SLE, MS, RA, and SS, were 1.7, 1.8, 0.7, and 1.3, respectively. Interestingly, these values presented a positive correlation trend with the standardized mortality rates -2.66, 2.89, 1.54, and 1.41, respectively. In addition, shared altered gut bacteria among the autoimmune diseases may correlate with the prevalence of polyautoimmunity in patients with SLE, SS, RA, and MS, that is, 41 percent, 32.6 percent, 14 percent, and 1-16.6 percent, respectively. Overall, this review suggests that gut dysbiosis in autoimmune diseases may be closely related to the failure of the gut immune system to maintain homeostasis.
Periodontitis is a chronic inflammation of the periodontium caused by persistent bacterial infection that leads to the breakdown of connective tissue and bone. Because the ability to reconstruct the ...periodontium is limited after alveolar bone loss, early diagnosis and intervention should be the primary goals of periodontal treatment. However, periodontitis often progresses without noticeable symptoms, and many patients do not seek professional dental care until the periodontal destruction progresses to the point of no return. Furthermore, the current diagnosis of periodontitis depends on time-consuming clinical measurements. Therefore, there is an unmet need for near-patient testing to diagnose periodontitis. Saliva is an optimal biological fluid to serve as a near-patient diagnostic tool for periodontitis. Recent developments in point-of-care (POC) testing indicate that a diagnostic test for periodontitis using saliva is now technically feasible. A number of promising salivary biomarkers associated with periodontitis have been reported. A panel of optimal biomarkers must be carefully selected based on the pathogenesis of periodontitis. The biggest hurdle for the POC diagnosis of periodontitis using saliva may be the process of validation in a large, diverse patient population. Therefore, we propose the organization of an International Consortium for Biomarkers of Periodontitis, which will gather efforts to identify, select, and validate salivary biomarkers for the diagnosis of periodontitis.
Key events in the pathogenesis of Sjӧgren syndrome (SS) include the change of salivary gland epithelial cells into antigen-presenting cell-like phenotypes and focal lymphocytic sialadenitis (FLS). ...However, what triggers these features in SS is unknown. Dysbiosis of the gut and oral microbiomes is a potential environmental factor in SS, but its connection to the etiopathogenesis of SS remains unclear. This study aimed to characterize the oral microbiota in SS and to investigate its potential role in the pathogenesis of SS. Oral bacterial communities were collected by whole mouthwash from control subjects (14 without oral dryness and 11 with dryness) and primary SS patients (8 without oral dryness and 17 with dryness) and were analyzed by pyrosequencing. The SS oral microbiota was characterized by an increased bacterial load and Shannon diversity. Through comparisons of control and SS in combined samples and then separately in non-dry and dry conditions, SS-associated taxa independent of dryness were identified. Three SS-associated species and 2 control species were selected and used to challenge human submandibular gland tumor (HSG) cells. Among the selected SS-associated bacterial species, Prevotella melaninogenica uniquely upregulated the expression of MHC molecules, CD80, and IFNλ in HSG cells. Concomitantly, P. melaninogenica efficiently invaded HSG cells. Sections of labial salivary gland (LSG) biopsies from 8 non-SS subjects and 15 SS patients were subjected to in situ hybridization using universal and P. melaninogenica-specific probes. Ductal cells and the areas of infiltration were heavily infected with bacteria in the LSGs with FLS. Collectively, dysbiotic oral microbiota may initiate the deregulation of SGECs and the IFN signature through bacterial invasion into ductal cells. These findings may provide new insights into the etiopathogenesis of SS.
Mineral trioxide aggregate (MTA) has been introduced as a choice material for regenerative dentistry. To date, the diverse biological activities of MTA, including its anti-inflammatory effects, have ...been extensively discussed. However, there is limited insight into the link between MTA and immune cell migration. In this study, we report the role of MTA in enhancing both chemotactic and chemokinetic immune cell migration through distinct signaling pathways. By using versatile live imaging techniques, we demonstrated that MTA-mediated CaSR activation induced diverse downstream pathways to govern cell migratory capacity. In this context, Cdc42 generates cytoskeleton-driven cellular protrusions to steer directional cell migration (chemotaxis) whereas Ca2+-calmodulin dependent myosin light chain kinase induces cell contractility that plays an important role in speeding up the average migration speed (chemokinesis). Our findings illuminate an unrecognized role for MTA and the related CaSR signaling network in immune cell migration, providing evidence that can drive development of novel approaches to immunological therapy.
Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a neurodegenerative disease accompanied by neuroimmune inflammation in the frontal cortex and hippocampus. Recently, the presence of bacteria in AD-affected brains has ...been documented, prompting speculation about their potential role in AD-associated neuroinflammation. However, the characterization of bacteriota in human brains affected by AD remains inconclusive. This study aimed to investigate potential associations between specific bacteria and AD pathology by examining brain tissues from AD-associated neurodegenerative regions (frontal cortex and hippocampus) and the non-AD-associated hypothalamus. Employing 16S rRNA gene sequencing, 30 postmortem brain tissue samples from four individuals with normal brain histology (N) and four AD patients were analyzed, along with three blank controls. A remarkably low biomass characterized the brain bacteriota, with their overall structures delineated primarily by brain regions rather than the presence of AD. While most analyzed parameters exhibited no significant distinction in the brain bacteriota between the N and AD groups, the unique detection of Cloacibacterium normanense in the AD-associated neurodegenerative regions stood out. Additionally, infection-associated bacteria, as opposed to periodontal pathogens, were notably enriched in AD brains. This study's findings provide valuable insights into potential link between bacterial infection and neuroinflammation in AD.
Oral lichen planus (OLP) is a chronic T cell-mediated inflammatory disease of unknown etiology. We previously proposed that the intracellular bacteria detected in OLP lesions are important triggering ...factors for T cell infiltration. This study aimed to identify OLP-associated bacterial species through the characterization of intratissue bacterial communities of OLP lesions. Seven pairs of bacterial communities collected from the mucosal surface and biopsied tissues of OLP lesions were analyzed by high-throughput sequencing of the 16S rRNA gene. The intratissue bacterial communities were characterized by decreased alpha diversity but increased beta diversity compared with those on the mucosal surface. While the relative abundance of most taxa was decreased within the tissues, that of Escherichia coli was significantly increased. Four E. coli strains were isolated from additional OLP biopsies and verified as K12 strains by whole-genome sequencing. The distribution of E. coli in sections of control (n = 12) and OLP (n = 22) tissues was examined by in situ hybridization. E. coli was detected in most OLP tissues, suggesting its potential role in the pathogenesis of OLP. The oral E. coli strains isolated from OLP tissues will be useful to investigate their role as triggering factors for T cell infiltration.
Abstract Objective Gingival fibroblasts (GFs) are an important regulatory cell type in the progression of periodontitis. This study aimed to compare the expression levels of genes associated with ...inflammation, extracellular matrix degradation and bone destruction in GFs isolated from healthy and periodontitis subjects in the absence and presence of Porphyromonas gingivalis. Designs Primary GFs from healthy ( n = 10) and periodontitis subjects ( n = 10) were stimulated in vitro with viable P. gingivalis ATCC 49417 and 3 clinical isolates of P. gingivalis with type II fimbriae from one healthy subject (KUMC-H1) and two periodontitis patients (KUMC-P1, -P2). The mRNA expression of proinflammatory cytokines (interleukin (IL) -6 , IL-8, IL-1B), anti-inflammatory cytokines (IL-4, IL-10), matrix metalloproteinase (MMP)-1 and 2, tissue inhibitor matrix metalloproteinase (TIMP)-3 and osteoprotegerin (OPG) were assessed using real-time PCR. The levels of IL-6, IL-1β and TIMP-3 protein were measured by an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. Results The mRNA expression of IL-6, IL-1B and TIMP-3 was higher in the periodontitis group compared with the healthy group, whereas IL-4 expression was higher in the healthy group both in the absence and presence of the P. gingivalis strains. The expression levels of IL-6, IL-1β and TIMP-3 protein were also higher in the periodontitis group in the absence and/or presence of the P. gingivalis strains. There was inter-strain variability among P. gingivalis strains in the ability to induce expression of the proinflammatory cytokines, MMPs and OPG and in the ability to degrade IL-6 protein. Conclusion High expression of proinflammatory cytokines and TIMP-3 and low expression of IL-4 can be a signature of GFs associated with periodontitis.
PDF
