Abstract:
Bacteria present in the oral cavity play an important role in the progression of
tooth decay or dental caries, a disease that can affect a person's work efficiency
according to the Department of Health. This study aims to assess and compare the
bacterial diversities in carious dentin (CD) and buccal mucosa (BM) samples of caries active
Filipino Adults using PCR-DGGE. This paper is a descriptive-comparative study
of bacterial profiles of two oral sites 一 carious dentin and buccal mucosa. Dentin extracts
and buccal swabs were collected from three male and three female subjects; and placed in
MRS broth, nutrient broth and PBS solution. CT AB DNA extraction and nested PCR of
16S rRNA gene internal hypervariable regions V3-V5 was then performed. Nested PCR
products were run on an 8% denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis (DGGE)
polyacrylamide gel with a 40-70% gradient. DGGE gels were analyzed using Bio-Rad
Quantity One software. Dice similarity coefficients of 50.73% and 55.49% were obtained
for CD and BM samples, respectively. Comparison of the two oral sites yielded a 50.26%
Dice similarity coefficient. Despite the weak similarity demonstrated by the similarity
coefficients, it was believed that a core group for both CD and BM samples could exist as
suggested by the presence of ubiquitous and frequently recurring bands. The presence of bands ubiquitous in both sites also suggested the possible occurrence of bacterial
translocation but the limited data from this study could not verify this idea. Identification
of bacteria and physiological studies were needed to verify this.
