Identification of oral microbial biomarkers for prediabetes in young adults: A two-stage population-based study

This study aims to identify oral microbial signatures associated with prediabetes in young adults and to investigate potential oral risk factors for early-onset diabetes, as well as to pinpoint targets for monitoring and intervention.

The study involved a large cross-sectional analysis of 3,142 participants from two independent cohorts. The discovery cohort consisted of 334 prediabetes cases and 1,266 controls, while the validation cohort had 325 prediabetes cases and 1,217 controls. We compared the basic and clinical characteristics of the different groups. Additionally, 16S rRNA gene sequencing was conducted on oral rinse samples.

Prediabetes-enriched taxa comprised Bacteroidetes, Prevotella_7, and Veillonella. In contrast, normoglycemic controls showed a higher presence of Firmicutes and Streptococcus. The combined models, constructed from indicators identified by LASSO regression, including BMI, HOMA-IR, and specific microbiota (Prevotella_7 or Veillonella), demonstrated discriminatory performance. In the discovery set, the AUC values were 0.761 and 0.758, respectively, whereas in the validation set, the AUC values were 0.693 and 0.696, respectively.

Reproducible alterations and enrichment of Prevotella_7 and Veillonella are linked to prediabetes in young adults. Furthermore, the combined interaction between specific bacterial genera and core clinical indicators may be crucial in the development of prediabetes in young individuals.