Microbiota of the Tongue and Systemic Connections: The Examination of the Tongue as an Integrated Approach in Oral Medicine

Cinzia Casu,Francesco Inchingolo,Valentino Natoli,Felice Lorusso,Antonio Scarano,Giovanna Mosaico

doi:10.3390/hygiene1020006

Abstract

The tongue is able to quickly reflect the state of health or disease of the human body. Tongue inspection is an important diagnostic approach. It is a unique method that allows to explore the pathogenesis of diseases based on the guiding principles of the holistic concept that involves the observation of changes in the lining of the tongue in order to understand the physiological functions and pathological changes of the body. It is a potential method of screening and early detection of cancer. However, the subjective inspection of the tongue has a low reliability index, and therefore computerized systems of acquisition of diagnostic bioinformation have been developed to analyze the lining of the tongue. Next-generation sequencing technology is used to determine the V2–V4 hypervariable regions of 16S rRNA to study the microbiota. A lot of neoplasms are identified only at an advanced phase, while in the early stages, many subjects remain in an asymptomatic form. On the contrary, the early diagnosis is able to increase the prognosis of cancer and improve the survival rates of subjects. Evidently, it is necessary to develop new strategies in oral medicine for the early diagnosis of diseases, and the diagnosis of the tongue as a minimally invasive method is certainly one of them.

Highlights

For thousands of years, doctors have diagnosed a patient’s health by inspecting the tongue, especially the back of the tongue
The level of Capnocytophaga was higher in the saliva of patients with oral cancer [25,26]. These results indicated that the tongue thin coating (W) is an important reference of the oral microbiota
In a case-control study, Ceccarelli F., Orrù G., and Pilloni A. et al analyzed the presence and quantification of P. gingivalis in a large healthy cohort, and there was a significant association between the percentage of P. gingivalis on the total tongue biofilm and disease activity in patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA), suggesting that the microbiological status of the oral cavity could play a role in the mechanisms of inflammation

Summary

Introduction

Doctors have diagnosed a patient’s health by inspecting the tongue, especially the back of the tongue. Inspection of the tongue as a method of clinical diagnosis is a unique feature of Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM). Chinese Medicine, the tongue is able to absolve a key role of a biosensor, while the different tongue regions are able to provide information to check the diagnosis the organ systems health [1,2]. In accordance to Traditional Chinese Medicine, “A pathology arises associated to a tongue surface coating appearance. The surface coating represents the exterior manifestation, which corresponds to the sustaining disease, and is the primary indication for the diagnosis making”. In this way, the appropriate knowledge of the molecular aspects

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