Characterization of the oral microbiome of children with type 1 diabetes in the acute and chronic phases

Xiaoxiao Yuan; Jin Wu; Ruimin Chen; Zhihong Chen; Zhe Su; Jinwen Ni; Miaoying Zhang; Chengjun Sun; Fengwei Zhang; Yefei Liu; Junlin He; Lei Zhang; Feihong Luo; Ruirui Wang

doi:10.1080/20002297.2022.2094048

Characterization of the oral microbiome of children with type 1 diabetes in the acute and chronic phases

J Oral Microbiol. 2022 Jul 11;14(1):2094048. doi: 10.1080/20002297.2022.2094048. eCollection 2022.

Authors

Xiaoxiao Yuan¹, Jin Wu², Ruimin Chen³, Zhihong Chen⁴, Zhe Su⁵, Jinwen Ni¹, Miaoying Zhang¹, Chengjun Sun¹, Fengwei Zhang⁶, Yefei Liu⁷, Junlin He⁸, Lei Zhang⁶, Feihong Luo¹, Ruirui Wang⁶

Affiliations

¹ Department of Pediatric Endocrinology and Inherited Metabolic Diseases, Children's Hospital of Fudan University, Shanghai, China.
² Department of Pediatrics, West China Second University Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu, Sichuan, China.
³ Department of Pediatrics, Fuzhou Children's Hospital of Fujian Medical University, Fuzhou, Fujian, China.
⁴ Department of Neuroendocrinology Pediatrics, Affiliated Hospital of Qingdao University, Qingdao, Shandong, China.
⁵ Shenzhen Children's Hospital, Shenzhen, Guangdong, China.
⁶ Shanghai Innovation Center of TCM Health Service, Shanghai University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Shanghai, China.
⁷ Department of Endodontics, Shanghai Stomatological Hospital & School of Stomatology, Fudan University Shanghai, China.
⁸ Department of Periodontics, Shanghai Stomatological Hospital & School of Stomatology, Fudan University, Shanghai, China.

Abstract

Background and aim: The relationship between the oral microbiota and type 1 diabetes (T1D) remains unclear. We aimed to evaluate the variations in the oral microbiome in T1D and identify potentially associated bacterial factors.

Methods: We performed high-throughput sequencing of the V3-V4 area of the 16S rRNA gene to profile the oral bacterial composition of 47 healthy children (CON group), 46 children with new-onset T1D in the acute phase (NT1D group), and 10 children with T1D in the chronic phase receiving insulin treatment (CT1D group). Multivariate statistical analysis of sequencing data was performed.

Results: Compared to the CON group, the NT1D group was characterized by decreased diversity and increased abundance of genera harboring opportunistic pathogens, while this trend was partially reversed in the CT1D group. Differential genera between groups could distinguish the NT1D group from the CON group (AUC = 0.933) and CT1D group (AUC = 0.846), respectively. Moreover, T1D-enriched genera were closely correlated with HbA1c, FBG and WBCs levels.

Conclusion: Our results showed that the acute phase of T1D was characterized by oral microbiota dysbiosis, which could be partially ameliorated via glycemic control. The possible role of oral microbiota dysbiosis on oral health and systemic metabolic status in T1D warrants further mechanistic investigation.

Keywords: Type 1 diabetes; glycemic control; high-throughput sequencing; microbial markers; oral microbiota dysbiosis.

Grants and funding

This research project was funded by the Clinical special project of integrated traditional Chinese and Western medicine in 2019, Shanghai Municipal Health Commission, Shanghai Municipal Administrator of Traditional Chinese Medicine; the National Natural Science Foundation of China (No. 82004149); Shanghai Collaborative Innovation Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Services (2021 Science and Technology 02-37); Local Colleges Faculty Constitution of Shanghai MSTC (22010504300); the National Key Research and Development Program of China (2016YFC1305302).