Dataset Information

The Toothbrush Microbiome: Impact of User Age, Period of Use and Bristle Material on the Microbial Communities of Toothbrushes.

ABSTRACT: Toothbrushes play a central role in oral hygiene and must be considered one of the most common articles of daily use. We analysed the bacterial colonization of used toothbrushes by next generation sequencing (NGS) and by cultivation on different media. Furthermore, we determined the occurrence of antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs) and the impact of different bristle materials on microbial growth and survival. NGS data revealed that Enterobacteriaceae, Micrococcaceae, Actinomycetaceae, and Streptococcaceae comprise major parts of the toothbrush microbiome. The composition of the microbiome differed depending on the period of use or user age. While higher fractions of Actinomycetales, Lactobacillales, and Enterobacterales were found after shorter periods, Micrococcales dominated on both toothbrushes used for more than four weeks and on toothbrushes of older users, while in-vitro tests revealed increasing counts of Micrococcus on all bristle materials as well. Compared to other environments, we found a rather low frequency of ARGs. We determined bacterial counts between 1.42 × 106 and 1.19 × 107 cfu/toothbrush on used toothbrushes and no significant effect of different bristles materials on bacterial survival or growth. Our study illustrates that toothbrushes harbor various microorganisms and that both period of use and user age might affect the microbial composition.

SUBMITTER: Zinn MK

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7563892 | biostudies-literature | 2020 Sep

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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The Toothbrush Microbiome: Impact of User Age, Period of Use and Bristle Material on the Microbial Communities of Toothbrushes.

Zinn Marc-Kevin MK Schages Laura L Bockmühl Dirk D

Microorganisms 20200909 9

Toothbrushes play a central role in oral hygiene and must be considered one of the most common articles of daily use. We analysed the bacterial colonization of used toothbrushes by next generation sequencing (NGS) and by cultivation on different media. Furthermore, we determined the occurrence of antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs) and the impact of different bristle materials on microbial growth and survival. NGS data revealed that Enterobacteriaceae, Micrococcaceae, Actinomycet ...[more]

PMID: 32916797

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Project description:BACKGROUND:Biting objects was a parafunctional oral habit among children with special care needs. Chewing or biting toothbrushes could expedite the process of toothbrush wear. However, few studies evaluated the deterioration levels of toothbrushes used by children with special needs. This study aimed to assess the deterioration level of toothbrushes used by children with special care needs, and collect parents' feedbacks to improve the design of children's toothbrushes. METHODS:The cross-sectional study recruited 277 children who had special care needs. Children's toothbrushing behaviors, background information, and parents' comments on toothbrushes were obtained. Toothbrush deterioration was assessed by bristle wear and bite mark scores. Higher scores indicated severe deterioration. RESULTS:Three hundred twenty-one toothbrushes were collected. Children who used 2 to 6 toothbrushes in a 3-month period showed higher toothbrush deterioration scores than children who used a single toothbrush. Over 40% children's toothbrushes presented excessive wear. Excessive wear was associated with social skills and parents' education background. Distinct bite marks tended to exist on toothbrushes which had been used by children who showed challenging behaviors during toothbrushing (OR?=?1.96, 95%CI1.15-3.32, p?<?0.05). Approximately 27% parents reported that children's toothbrushes should be modified. Parents recommended that the size of toothbrush heads, the angle of handles, and the texture/length/distribution/diameter of bristles should be adjusted. Besides, ideal toothbrushes should be able to provide verbal or visual instructions to children, motivate children to brush teeth, simplify toothbrushing procedure, and protect children who had toothbrush-biting habits. CONCLUSIONS:Excessive wear and distinct bite marks can be found on toothbrushes that had been used by children with special care needs. Toothbrush deterioration was associated with children's social skills, toothbrushing behaviors, and parents' educational attainment. The commercially available toothbrushes should be modified to meet the additional needs of young children.

Project description:Most studies examining the commensal human oral microbiome are focused on disease or are limited in methodology. In order to diagnose and treat diseases at an early and reversible stage an in-depth definition of health is indispensible. The aim of this study therefore was to define the healthy oral microbiome using recent advances in sequencing technology (454 pyrosequencing).We sampled and sequenced microbiomes from several intraoral niches (dental surfaces, cheek, hard palate, tongue and saliva) in three healthy individuals. Within an individual oral cavity, we found over 3600 unique sequences, over 500 different OTUs or "species-level" phylotypes (sequences that clustered at 3% genetic difference) and 88 - 104 higher taxa (genus or more inclusive taxon). The predominant taxa belonged to Firmicutes (genus Streptococcus, family Veillonellaceae, genus Granulicatella), Proteobacteria (genus Neisseria, Haemophilus), Actinobacteria (genus Corynebacterium, Rothia, Actinomyces), Bacteroidetes (genus Prevotella, Capnocytophaga, Porphyromonas) and Fusobacteria (genus Fusobacterium).Each individual sample harboured on average 266 "species-level" phylotypes (SD 67; range 123 - 326) with cheek samples being the least diverse and the dental samples from approximal surfaces showing the highest diversity. Principal component analysis discriminated the profiles of the samples originating from shedding surfaces (mucosa of tongue, cheek and palate) from the samples that were obtained from solid surfaces (teeth).There was a large overlap in the higher taxa, "species-level" phylotypes and unique sequences among the three microbiomes: 84% of the higher taxa, 75% of the OTUs and 65% of the unique sequences were present in at least two of the three microbiomes. The three individuals shared 1660 of 6315 unique sequences. These 1660 sequences (the "core microbiome") contributed 66% of the reads. The overlapping OTUs contributed to 94% of the reads, while nearly all reads (99.8%) belonged to the shared higher taxa.We obtained the first insight into the diversity and uniqueness of individual oral microbiomes at a resolution of next-generation sequencing. We showed that a major proportion of bacterial sequences of unrelated healthy individuals is identical, supporting the concept of a core microbiome at health.

Dataset Information

The Toothbrush Microbiome: Impact of User Age, Period of Use and Bristle Material on the Microbial Communities of Toothbrushes.

Publications

The Toothbrush Microbiome: Impact of User Age, Period of Use and Bristle Material on the Microbial Communities of Toothbrushes.

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