Enterobacteriaceae and pseudomonadaceae on the dorsum of the human tongue

Simone Conti,Cristiane Yumi Koga-Ito,Silvana Soléo Ferreira Dos Santos,Antonio Olavo Cardoso Jorge

doi:10.1590/s1678-77572009000500005

Abstract

Objective:The aim of this study was to correlate the presence of Enterobacteriaceae, Pseudomonadaceae, Moraxellaceae and Xanthomonadaceae on the posterior dorsum of the human tongue with the presence of tongue coating, gender, age, smoking habit and denture use.Material and Methods:Bacteria were isolated from the posterior tongue dorsum of 100 individuals in MacConkey agar medium and were identified by the API 20E system (Biolab-Mérieux).Results:43% of the individuals, presented the target microorganisms on the tongue dorsum, with greater prevalence among individuals between 40 and 50 years of age (p = 0.001) and non-smokers (p=0.0485).Conclusions:A higher prevalence of Enterobacteriaceae and Pseudomonadaceae was observed on the tongue dorsum of the individuals evaluated. There was no correlation between these species and the presence and thickness of tongue coating, gender and presence of dentures.

Highlights

The microbial composition of dental biofilm has been extensively studied
Nasal and paranasal secretion may accumulate in the posterior region of the tongue dorsum, favoring the formation of tongue coating causing halitosis as a result of amino acid degradation by bacteria under anaerobic conditions[15]
The isolated presence of Enterobacteriaceae and Pseudomonadaceae was observed among 29% and 6% of the volunteers, respectively

Summary

Introduction

The microbial composition of dental biofilm has been extensively studied. Fewer studies have evaluated the microbiota of the oral soft tissue which comprises at least 80% of the surfaces that can be colonized within the mouth[10]. There has been increased interest in the study of the microbiota of tongue, due to its possible association with oral halitosis[7,14,24]. Previous studies have suggested that Enterobacteriaceae may be involved in halitosis, as they produce putrefied gases when they metabolize proteins or certain amino acids[5]. Nasal and paranasal secretion may accumulate in the posterior region of the tongue dorsum, favoring the formation of tongue coating causing halitosis as a result of amino acid degradation by bacteria under anaerobic conditions[15]

Methods

Results

Conclusion