Causal relationship between gut microbiota and dental caries: a two-sample mendelian randomization study

Area of Science:

• Microbiome research
• Oral health
• Genetics

Background:

• Growing evidence links gut microbiota to various human diseases.
• Oral microbiota dysregulation can impact gut microbiota composition.
• The influence of gut microbiota on oral diseases, particularly dental caries, remains under-explored.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the potential causal effects of gut microbiota on dental caries development.
• To elucidate the mechanisms underlying the gut-oral microbiota axis in relation to dental caries.

Main Methods:

• Mendelian randomization analysis of genome-wide association studies (GWAS) data for gut microbiota and dental caries.
• Utilized Inverse Variance Weighted (IVW) as the primary analytical method.
• Employed MR-Egger regression, IVW regression, and leave-one-out tests to ensure result reliability and stability.

Main Results:

• Identified Eubacteriumbrachygroup and Terrisporobacter as positively correlated with dental caries risk.
• Found negative correlations between dental caries and Escherichia.Shigella, Oscillibacter, RuminococcaceaeUCG014, and Oscillospira.
• Odds ratios (OR) and 95% confidence intervals (CI) were calculated for each identified microbial association.

Conclusions:

• Established a significant causal relationship between gut microbiota composition and dental caries development.
• Suggests that modulating gut microbiota could be a novel strategy for influencing dental caries.
• Highlights the importance of the gut-oral microbiota axis in oral health outcomes.