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Journal of Clinical Microbiology, June 2008, p. 2015-2021, Vol. 46, No. 6
0095-1137/08/$08.00+0     doi:10.1128/JCM.02411-07
Copyright © 2008, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.

Bacterial Profiles of Root Caries in Elderly Patients ^,

Institute of Oral Biology, Faculty of Dentistry, University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway,¹ Department of Molecular Genetics, The Forsyth Institute,² Department of Oral Medicine, Infection and Immunity, Harvard School of Dental Medicine, Boston, Massachusetts,³ Norwegian Institute of Public Health, Oslo, Norway⁴

Received 17 December 2007/ Returned for modification 12 February 2008/ Accepted 24 March 2008

Culture-based studies have shown that Streptococcus mutans and lactobacilli are associated with root caries (RC). The purpose of the present study was to assess the bacterial diversity of RC in elderly patients by use of culture-independent molecular techniques and to determine the associations of specific bacterial species or bacterial communities with healthy and carious roots. Plaque was collected from root surfaces of 10 control subjects with no RC and from 11 subjects with RC. The bacterial 16S rRNA genes from extracted DNA were PCR amplified, cloned, and sequenced to determine species identity. From a total of 3,544 clones, 245 predominant species or phylotypes were observed, representing eight bacterial phyla. The majority (54%) of the species detected have not yet been cultivated. Species of Selenomonas and Veillonella were common in all samples. The healthy microbiota included Fusobacterium nucleatum subsp. polymorphum, Leptotrichia spp., Selenomonas noxia, Streptococcus cristatus, and Kingella oralis. Lactobacilli were absent, S. mutans was present in one, and Actinomyces spp. were present in 50% of the controls. In contrast, the microbiota of the RC subjects was dominated by Actinomyces spp., lactobacilli, S. mutans, Enterococcus faecalis, Selenomonas sp. clone CS002, Atopobium and Olsenella spp., Prevotella multisaccharivorax, Pseudoramibacter alactolyticus, and Propionibacterium sp. strain FMA5. The bacterial profiles of RC showed considerable subject-to-subject variation, indicating that the microbial communities are more complex than previously presumed. The data suggest that putative etiological agents of RC include not only S. mutans, lactobacilli, and Actinomyces but also species of Atopobium, Olsenella, Pseudoramibacter, Propionibacterium, and Selenomonas.

Published ahead of print on 2 April 2008.

Supplemental material for this article may be found at http://jcm.asm.org/.