Abstract
It has been hypothesised that oral bacteria can migrate, through the blood, from the mouth to the arterial plaques, thus exacerbating atherosclerosis. This study compared bacteria present in the peripheral blood of individuals with and without coronary artery disease (CAD). RNA sequences obtained from blood were downloaded from GEO (GSE58150). Eight patients with coronary artery calcification (CAC) scoring > 500 and eight healthy individuals were analysed. After conducting quality control, the sequences were aligned to the hg38 reference genome using Hisat2. Bacterial taxa were analysed by inputting the unmapped sequences into Kraken. Ecological indices were calculated using Vegan. The package DESeq2 was used to compare the counts of bacteria per standard rank between groups. A total of 51 species were found only in patients with CAD and 41 were exclusively present in healthy individuals. The counts of one phylum, one class, three orders, two families and one genus were significantly different between the analysed groups (p < 0.00032, FDR < 10%), including the orders Cardiobacteriales, Corynebacteriales and Fusobacteriales. Twenty-three bacterial species belonging to the subgingival plaque bacterial complexes were also identified in the blood of individuals from both the groups; Fusobacterium nucleatum was significantly less frequent in patients with CAD (p = 0.0012, FDR = 4.8%). Furthermore, the frequency of another 11 bacteria differed significantly among patients with CAD than that among healthy individuals (p < 0.0030, FDR < 10%). These bacteria have not been previously reported in patients with atherosclerosis and periodontitis. The presence of members of the subgingival plaque bacterial complexes in the blood of patients with CAC supports the hypothesis that the periodontopathogens can be disseminated through the blood flow to other body parts where they may enhance inflammatory processes that can lead to the development or exacerbation of atherosclerosis.
Highlights
It has been hypothesised that oral bacteria can migrate, through the blood, from the mouth to the arterial plaques, exacerbating atherosclerosis
Kamińska et al performed an in vitro study to assess the antimicrobial properties of fluvastatin, atorvastatin, lovastatin and simvastatin against oral bacteria associated with periodontitis (Porphyromonas gingivalis, Fusobacterium nucleatum, Actinomyces naeslundii, Tannerella forsythia, Streptococcus gordonii)
Bacteria from the subgingival plaque bacterial complexes were present in the blood of individuals from the two groups, including F. nucleatum which was significantly less frequent in CAC
Summary
It has been hypothesised that oral bacteria can migrate, through the blood, from the mouth to the arterial plaques, exacerbating atherosclerosis. The presence of members of the subgingival plaque bacterial complexes in the blood of patients with CAC supports the hypothesis that the periodontopathogens can be disseminated through the blood flow to other body parts where they may enhance inflammatory processes that can lead to the development or exacerbation of atherosclerosis Oral infections such as apical periodontitis and caries have been associated with the presence of cardiovascular diseases[1] and with other systemic diseases such as d iabetes[2]. Irrespective, in 2015, Cotti and M ercuro[2] assessed 20 studies published between 1989 and 2012 and established a positive correlation between oral health and cardiovascular diseases In their review, they concluded that CAD was more prevalent in patients who underwent dental extractions owing to the presence of dental infections. Persistent increases in cytokines have been associated with vascular dysfunction and vascular diseases, such as atherosclerosis and h ypertension[19]
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