Dysbiosis of the Oral Ecosystem in Severe Congenital Neutropenia Patients

Abstract

Purpose: To decipher the underlying immunological mechanisms in predisposition to oral microbial dysbiosis in severe congenital neutropenia (SCN) patients.

Experimental design: Ten SCN patients (5-23 years old) and 12 healthy controls (5-22 years old) are periodontally examined and provided saliva, subgingival plaque, and gingival crevicular fluid (GCF) samples. The SCN patients received oral hygiene therapy and are re-evaluated after 6 months. Antimicrobial peptides HPN1-3 and LL-37 are assessed in saliva by ELISA. Concentration of 30 cytokines is measured in saliva and GCF by human 30-plex panel, while bacterial profiles of saliva and subgingival plaque are assessed using 16S rDNA amplicon sequencing.

Results: There is no significant difference in salivary HPN1-3 and LL-37 concentration between the SCN patients and controls. At baseline, clinical, immunological, and microbiological parameters of the patients are indicative of oral ecological dysbiosis. The SCN patients have significantly higher bleeding on probing (BOP)%, GCF volume, and cytokine levels, high bacterial load with low bacterial diversity in saliva. The associations between the microbiome and immunological parameters in the SCN patients differ from those in the healthy individuals.

Conclusions and clinical relevance: SCN patients have a dysregulated immune response toward commensal oral microbiota, which could be responsible for the observed clinical and microbiological signs of dysbiosis.

Keywords: chemokines; congenital neutropenia; cytokines; gingival crevicular fluid; inflammation; microbiota; saliva.