The role of periodontal disease in atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease

Atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease(ASCVD)includes a group of disorders of the heart and blood vessels and accounts for major morbidity and premature death worldwide.Periodontitis is a chronic inflammatory disease with the gradual destruction of supporting tissues around the teeth,including gingiva,periodontal ligament,alveolar bone,and cementum.Periodontitis has been found to potentially increase the risk of ASCVD.Generally,oral microorganisms and inflammation are the major factors for periodontitis to the incidence of ASCVD.Recently,evidence has shown that the loss of masticatory function is another important factor of periodontitis to the incidence of ASCVD.In this review,we illustrate the recent finding of the relationship between periodontitis and ASCVD,from a microscale perspective-oral microorganisms,inflammation,and tooth loss.With the high prevalence of periodontitis,it is important to add oral therapy as a regular ASCVD prevention strategy.Regular dental visits could be a helpful strategy for ASCVD patients or general medical practitioners.

Analysis of oral microorganism diversity in healthy individuals before and after chewing areca nuts using PCR-denatured gradient gel electrophoresis

To analyze oral microbial diversity in the saliva of 8 healthy individuals before and after chewing areca nuts. Saliva samples were collected before chewing areca nuts, after chewing areca nuts for 5 min and after chewing areca nuts for 30 min. DNA was extracted, and microbial diversity was examined using PCR-denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis(PCR-DGGE). When examining DGGE profiles collectively,the bands associated with Streptococcus and Veillonella were the most intense, making them the most prevalent bacteria. Furthermore, the band intensities did not decrease after chewing areca nuts for 5 or30 min; thus, these bacteria were unaffected. However, when examining some individuals, the band intensities for Streptococcus and Veillonella became more intense after 5 min of chewing and then returned to the pre-chewing level. This difference may be attributed to the mechanical movements of the oral cavity or individual differences. Other bacteria, such as Neisseria, Actinomycetes, and Rothia dentocariosa, were also found to have an increased or decreased prevalence following areca nut-chewing.Since the predominant species that are present following areca nut-chewing include Streptococcus and Veillonella, it would seem likely that these bacteria play an important role in the periodontal diseases associated with areca chewing.