Competition of Oral Microbiota used for Oral Microbiome Transplantation against Cariogenic Oral Bacteria

open_access
Open Access
Author:
Mac Elroy, Grant
Area of Honors:
Biological Anthropolgy
Degree:
Bachelor of Science
Document Type:
Thesis
Thesis Supervisors:
Laura S Weyrich, Thesis Supervisor
Laurel Nichole Pearson, Thesis Honors Advisor
Keywords:
oral microbiome transplant
caries
microbiota
competition
Abstract:
The human oral microbiome is an extremely diverse, complex, and dynamic ecosystem that plays a significant role in oral health. Dental caries is one of many oral diseases that develop with the help of the oral microbiome, which provides the ideal environment for the development of pathogenic bacteria. Because dental caries is the most prevalent disease in the world, investigating new therapeutics has become a growing field of research. One such therapeutic is an oral microbiome transplant (OMT). This treatment relies on transplanting the oral microbiome of ‘super donors,’ or select individuals with an extremely healthy oral microbiome, to recipients in need. Understanding the role of microbes within a super donor’s microbiome is key to establishing an oral microbiome transplant that is safe, effective, and ethical. Here, we isolated and identified microbes from two super donors’ oral microbiomes and investigated their ability to inhibit cariogenic bacteria. We identified ten unique bacterial species using culturing techniques and 16S ribosomal RNA sequencing. However, we discovered no evidence of super donor-derived microbes that were completely able to inhibit cariogenic bacteria, suggesting that when utilized individually, these taxa may not play key roles in inhibiting cariogenic bacteria and therefore promoting oral health. These results emphasize the difficulty of deciphering how the oral microbiome functions but provide a start toward establishing OMT as a viable treatment method for dental caries.