Alzheimer’s Disease Biomarker Studied in Gingival Microbiome
Research from New York University (NYU) College of Dentistry and Weill Cornell Medicine suggests older adults with pathogenic gingival bacteria are more likely than study controls to have a key biomarker for Alzheimer’s disease in their cerebrospinal fluid.
Research from New York University (NYU) College of Dentistry and Weill Cornell Medicine suggests older adults with pathogenic gingival bacteria are more likely than study controls to have a key biomarker for Alzheimer’s disease in their cerebrospinal fluid. These findings, published in Alzheimer’s & Dementia: Diagnosis, Assessment and Disease Monitoring, support growing evidence of a possible association between periodontal disease and cognitive disorders. The study builds on past research that found a link between periodontal disease and cognitive decline, specifically, Alzheimer’s disease and dementia.
The team, led by Angela Kamer, DDS, PhD, an associate professor of periodontology and implant dentistry at NYU College of Dentistry, evaluated 48 older adults for differences in subgingival periodontal bacteria. Researchers quantified pathogenic oral bacteria (e.g., Treponema, Porphyromonas, Tannerella, Fusobacterium, Prevotella, Fretibacterium and Dialister), and pro-oral-health bacteria (e.g., Rothia, Corynebacterium, Actinomyces and Capnocytophaga). The authors suggest the latter play a role in protecting individuals against Alzheimer’s disease because high levels help maintain a balanced microbiome and decrease inflammation. In a balanced environment, fewer pathogenic bacteria would escape the subgingival environment and travel to the brain.
The investigators plan additional research to test if improving periodontal health through scaling and root planing can modify brain amyloid levels — a key feature of Alzheimer’s — and prevent or slow cognitive decline.
From Decisions in Dentistry. September 2021;7(9):8.
