Oral Factors That Impact the Oral Microbiota in Parkinson’s Disease

Patients with Parkinson’s disease (PD) are at increased risk of aspiration pneumonia, their primary cause of death. Their oral microbiota differs from healthy controls, exacerbating this risk. Our goal was to explore if poor oral health, poor oral hygiene, and dysphagia status affect the oral microbiota composition of these patients. In this cross-sectional case-control study, the oral microbiota from hard and soft tissues of patients with PD (n = 30) and age-, gender-, and education-matched healthy controls (n = 30) was compared using 16S rRNA gene sequencing for bacterial identification. Study participants completed dietary, oral hygiene, drooling, and dysphagia questionnaires, and an oral health screening. Significant differences in soft tissue beta-diversity (p < 0.005) were found, and a higher abundance of opportunistic oral pathogens was detected in patients with PD. Factors that significantly influenced soft tissue beta-diversity and microbiota composition include dysphagia, drooling (both p < 0.05), and salivary pH (p < 0.005). Thus, patients with PD show significant differences in their oral microbiota compared to the controls, which may be due, in part, to dysphagia, drooling, and salivary pH. Understanding factors that alter their oral microbiota could lead to the development of diagnostic and treatment strategies that improve the quality of life and survivability of these patients.

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The Role of the Western Diet and Oral Microbiota in Parkinson’s Disease

Nutrients ◽

10.3390/nu14020355 ◽

2022 ◽

Vol 14 (2) ◽

pp. 355

Author(s):

Barbara Zapała ◽

Tomasz Stefura ◽

Tomasz Milewicz ◽

Julia Wątor ◽

Monika Piwowar ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Parkinson’S Disease ◽

Parkinson's Disease ◽

Food Preferences ◽

Amplicon Sequencing ◽

Rrna Gene ◽

Oral Microbiota ◽

Healthy Controls ◽

Increased Risk ◽

Specific Food

The type of diet not only affects the composition of the oral microflora but is also one of the more critical factors associated with an increased risk of Parkinson’s disease, PD. This study compared diet preferences and oral microbiota profiles in patients with PD vs. healthy controls. This study compared the oral microbiota composition of 59 patients with PD and 108 healthy controls (without neurodegeneration) using 16S rRNA gene amplicon sequencing. According to results, oral microbiota in patients with PD is different compared from healthy controls. In particular, decreased abundance of Proteobacteria, Pastescibacteria, and Tenercutes was observed. The oral cavity of patients with PD was characterized by the high relative abundance of bacteria from the genera Prevotella, Streptococcus, and Lactobaccillus. There were also differences in food preferences between patients with PD and healthy controls, which revealed significantly higher intake of margarine, fish, red meat, cereals products, avocado, and olives in the patients with PD relative to healthy controls. Strong positive and negative correlations between specific food products and microbial taxa were identified.

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Oral Health of Parkinson’s Disease Patients: A Case-Control Study

Parkinson s Disease ◽

10.1155/2018/9315285 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 2018 ◽

pp. 1-8 ◽

Cited By ~ 6

Author(s):

Marjolein A. E. van Stiphout ◽

Johan Marinus ◽

Jacobus J. van Hilten ◽

Frank Lobbezoo ◽

Cees de Baat

Keyword(s):

Parkinson’S Disease ◽

Parkinson's Disease ◽

Health Status ◽

Oral Health ◽

Oral Hygiene ◽

Oral Health Status ◽

Control Group ◽

Tooth Root ◽

Carious Lesions ◽

Care Support

The aim of the study was to examine the oral health status of Parkinson’s disease (PD) patients, to compare their oral health status to that of a control group, and to relate it to the duration and severity of PD.Materials and Methods. 74 PD patients and 74 controls were interviewed and orally examined. Among PD patients, the duration and the Hoehn and Yahr stage (HY) of the disease were registered.Results. More PD patients than controls reported oral hygiene care support as well as chewing/biting problems, taste disturbance, tooth mobility, and xerostomia, whereas dentate patients had more teeth with carious lesions, tooth root remnants, and biofilm. Both longer duration and higher HY were associated with more chewing problems and, in dentates, more teeth with restorations. In dentates, longer duration of the disease was associated with higher number of mobile teeth. Higher HY was associated with more oral hygiene care support as well as biting problems and, in dentates, more teeth with carious lesions and tooth root remnants.Conclusions. Comparatively, PD patients had weakened oral health status and reduced oral hygiene care. Both duration and severity of the disease were associated with more oral health and hygiene care problems.

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Differences in the Composition of Gut Microbiota between Patients with Parkinson’s Disease and Healthy Controls: A Cohort Study

Journal of Clinical Medicine ◽

10.3390/jcm10235698 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 10 (23) ◽

pp. 5698

Author(s):

Barbara Zapała ◽

Tomasz Stefura ◽

Magdalena Wójcik-Pędziwiatr ◽

Radosław Kabut ◽

Marta Bałajewicz-Nowak ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Parkinson’S Disease ◽

Parkinson's Disease ◽

Gut Microbiota ◽

Demographic Data ◽

Control Group ◽

Healthy Controls ◽

Microbiota Composition ◽

Gastrointestinal Microbiota ◽

The Difference ◽

Generation Sequencing

Gut microbiome and colonic inflammation can be associated with the predisposition and progression of Parkinson’s disease (PD). The presented study aimed to compare gastrointestinal microbiota composition between patients diagnosed with PD and treated only with Levodopa to healthy controls. In this prospective study, patients were recruited in 1 academic hospital from July 2019 to July 2020. The detailed demographic data and medical history were collected using a set of questionnaires. Fecal samples were obtained from all participants. Next-Generation Sequencing was used to assess the microbiota composition. The endpoint was the difference in composition of the gut microbiota. In this study, we enrolled 27 hospitalized PD patients with well-controlled symptoms. The control group included 44 healthy subjects matched for age. Among PD patients, our results presented a higher abundance of Bacteroides phylum, class Corynebacteria among phylum Actinobacteria, class Deltaproteobacteria among phylum Proteobacteria, and genera such as Butyricimonas, Robinsoniella, and Flavonifractor. The species Akkermansia muciniphila, Eubacterium biforme, and Parabacteroides merdae were identified as more common in the gut microbiota of PD patients. In conclusion, the patients diagnosed with PD have significantly different gut microbiota profiles in comparison with healthy controls.

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Periodontal Health and Caries Prevalence Evaluation in Patients Affected by Parkinson's Disease

Parkinson s Disease ◽

10.1155/2012/541908 ◽

2012 ◽

Vol 2012 ◽

pp. 1-6 ◽

Cited By ~ 23

Author(s):

Marco Cicciù ◽

Giacomo Risitano ◽

Giuseppe Lo Giudice ◽

Ennio Bramanti

Keyword(s):

Parkinson’S Disease ◽

Parkinson's Disease ◽

Oral Health ◽

Periodontal Disease ◽

Oral Hygiene ◽

Neurodegenerative Disorder ◽

Periodontal Diseases ◽

Control Group ◽

Study Group ◽

Untreated Caries

Parkinson's disease (PD) is a progressive neurodegenerative disorder related to the loss or absence of dopaminergic neurons in the brain. These deficits result in slowness of movement, tremor, rigidity, and dysfunction of behaviour. These symptoms negatively influence the patient’s capability to carry out the daily oral hygiene manoeuvres. The aim of this work is to record the oral health condition of PD patients evaluated at the IRCSS Bonino-Puleio in Messina. The oral health of 45 consecutive PD patients (study group) with neurologic diagnosis based on United Kingdom Brain Bank Criteria has been compared with that of another 45 no PD patients of the same age (control group). The evaluation of the general oral condition was recorded underlining tooth loss, active periodontal disease, and presence of untreated caries. The frequency of untreated caries, periodontal diseases, and missing teeth of the study group was significantly higher than in control group. Based on the data results, clinicians should direct high attention to the oral hygiene of patients with PD, above all at the early stages of the caries or periodontal disease, in order to prevent serious evolution of those pathologic dental conditions that may finally result in the tooth extraction event.

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Effect of Levodopa Initiation on the Gut Microbiota in Parkinson's Disease

Frontiers in Neurology ◽

10.3389/fneur.2021.574529 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 12 ◽

Author(s):

Natalia Palacios ◽

Anas Hannoun ◽

Julie Flahive ◽

Doyle Ward ◽

Kelsey Goostrey ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Parkinson’S Disease ◽

Parkinson's Disease ◽

Gut Microbiota ◽

Beta Diversity ◽

Motor Impairment ◽

Group Iv ◽

Control Group ◽

Microbiota Composition ◽

Two Samples ◽

The Impact

Background: The impact of Levodopa on the gut microbiota of Parkinson's disease (PD) patients has not been sufficiently addressed.Methods: We conducted a longitudinal study to examine the impact of Levodopa initiation on the gut microbiota composition of 19 PD patients who had not previously been exposed to Levodopa. Patients provided two stool samples prior to and two samples 90 days after starting Levodopa. Motor impairment (MDS-UPDRS Part III), diet, and other patient characteristics were assessed. 16S rRNA gene amplicon sequencing was used to characterize the microbiota. We examined, cross-sectionally and longitudinally, the associations between Levodopa use and alpha and beta diversity and performed feature-wise, multivariate modeling to identify taxa associated longitudinally with Levodopa use and with improvement in motor function after Levodopa administration.Results: We did not observe significant differences in alpha or beta diversity before vs. after initiation of Levodopa. In longitudinal feature-wise analyses, at the genus level, no taxa were significantly associated with Levodopa use after false discovery rate (FDR) correction (q < 0.05). We observed a marginally lower relative abundance of bacteria belonging to Clostridium group IV in PD patients who experienced a medium or large improvement in motor impairment in response to Levodopa compared to those with a small response [β = −0.64 (SE: 0.18), p-trend: 0.00015 p-FDR: 0.019].Conclusions: In this study, Levodopa was not associated with changes in microbiota composition in this longitudinal analysis. The association between abundance of Clostridium group IV and short-term motor symptom response to Levodopa is preliminary and should be investigated in larger, longer-term studies, that include a control group.

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Global efficiency of the motor network is decreased in Parkinson's disease in comparison with essential tremor and healthy controls

Brain and Behavior ◽

10.1002/brb3.2178 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Natalia Pelizari Novaes ◽

Joana Bisol Balardin ◽

Fabiana Campos Hirata ◽

Luciano Melo ◽

Edson Amaro ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Parkinson’S Disease ◽

Parkinson's Disease ◽

Essential Tremor ◽

Healthy Controls ◽

Global Efficiency ◽

Motor Network

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Vestibular semicircular canal function as detected by video Head Impulse Test (vHIT) is essentially unchanged in people with Parkinson’s disease compared to healthy controls

Journal of Vestibular Research ◽

10.3233/ves-201626 ◽

2021 ◽

pp. 1-9

Author(s):

Kim E. Hawkins ◽

Elodie Chiarovano ◽

Serene S. Paul ◽

Ann M Burgess ◽

Hamish G. MacDougall ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Parkinson’S Disease ◽

Parkinson's Disease ◽

Semicircular Canal ◽

Neurodegenerative Disorder ◽

Vestibular Function ◽

Head Impulse Test ◽

Healthy Controls ◽

Video Head Impulse Test ◽

Head Impulse ◽

Vestibulo Ocular Reflex

BACKGROUND: Parkinson’s disease (PD) is a common multi-system neurodegenerative disorder with possible vestibular system dysfunction, but prior vestibular function test findings are equivocal. OBJECTIVE: To report and compare vestibulo-ocular reflex (VOR) gain as measured by the video head impulse test (vHIT) in participants with PD, including tremor dominant and postural instability/gait dysfunction phenotypes, with healthy controls (HC). METHODS: Forty participants with PD and 40 age- and gender-matched HC had their vestibular function assessed. Lateral and vertical semicircular canal VOR gains were measured with vHIT. VOR canal gains between PD participants and HC were compared with independent samples t-tests. Two distinct PD phenotypes were compared to HC using Tukey’s ANOVA. The relationship of VOR gain with PD duration, phenotype, severity and age were investigated using logistic regression. RESULTS: There were no significant differences between groups in vHIT VOR gain for lateral or vertical canals. There was no evidence of an effect of PD severity, phenotype or age on VOR gains in the PD group. CONCLUSION: The impulsive angular VOR pathways are not significantly affected by the pathophysiological changes associated with mild to moderate PD.

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Development of standardized regression-based formulas to assess meaningful cognitive change in early Parkinson’s disease

Archives of Clinical Neuropsychology ◽

10.1093/arclin/acaa104 ◽

2020 ◽

Author(s):

Hannah L Combs ◽

Kate A Wyman-Chick ◽

Lauren O Erickson ◽

Michele K York

Keyword(s):

Parkinson’S Disease ◽

Parkinson's Disease ◽

Test Scores ◽

Prediction Models ◽

Early Stage ◽

Cognitive Change ◽

Cognitive Test ◽

Healthy Controls ◽

Change Over Time ◽

Over Time

Abstract Objective Longitudinal assessment of cognitive and emotional functioning in patients with Parkinson’s disease (PD) is helpful in tracking progression of the disease, developing treatment plans, evaluating outcomes, and educating patients and families. Determining whether change over time is meaningful in neurodegenerative conditions, such as PD, can be difficult as repeat assessment of neuropsychological functioning is impacted by factors outside of cognitive change. Regression-based prediction formulas are one method by which clinicians and researchers can determine whether an observed change is meaningful. The purpose of the current study was to develop and validate regression-based prediction models of cognitive and emotional test scores for participants with early-stage idiopathic PD and healthy controls (HC) enrolled in the Parkinson’s Progression Markers Initiative (PPMI). Methods Participants with de novo PD and HC were identified retrospectively from the PPMI archival database. Data from baseline testing and 12-month follow-up were utilized in this study. In total, 688 total participants were included in the present study (NPD = 508; NHC = 185). Subjects from both groups were randomly divided into development (70%) and validation (30%) subsets. Results Early-stage idiopathic PD patients and healthy controls were similar at baseline. Regression-based models were developed for all cognitive and self-report mood measures within both populations. Within the validation subset, the predicted and observed cognitive test scores did not significantly differ, except for semantic fluency. Conclusions The prediction models can serve as useful tools for researchers and clinicians to study clinically meaningful cognitive and mood change over time in PD.

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Evaluation of Effectiveness of a Toothpaste Containing Tea Tree Oil and Ethanolic Extract of Propolis on the Improvement of Oral Health in Patients Using Removable Partial Dentures

Molecules ◽

10.3390/molecules26134071 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 26 (13) ◽

pp. 4071

Author(s):

Karolina Wiatrak ◽

Tadeusz Morawiec ◽

Rafał Rój ◽

Patryk Kownacki ◽

Aleksandra Nitecka-Buchta ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Oral Health ◽

Oral Hygiene ◽

Ethanolic Extract ◽

Plaque Index ◽

Control Group ◽

Oral Microbiota ◽

Study Group ◽

Tea Tree Oil ◽

Tea Tree ◽

Ethanolic Extract Of Propolis

The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of toothpaste containing natural tea tree essential oil (TTO) and ethanolic extract of propolis (EEP), on microflora and selected indicators of oral health in patients using removable acrylic partial dentures. Fifty patients with varying conditions of hygiene were divided into two groups. The study group received the toothpaste with TTO and EEP, while the control group received the same toothpaste but without TTO and EEP. At the first visit, oral hygiene and hygiene of the prostheses were carried out. Control visits took place 7 and 28 days later and compared to baseline. Indexes like API (Approximal Plaque Index), mSBI (modified Sulcus Bleeding Index), OHI-s (simplified Oral Hygiene Index), and DPI (Denture Plaque Index) were assessed in three subsequent stages, and swabs were collected from floor of the mouth area to assess the microbiota. After 7 and 28 days of using the toothpaste with TTO and EEP, a statistically significant decrease of the examined indicator values were observed in the study group as compared to the values upon the initial visit. The number of isolated strains of microorganisms in the study group was decreased or maintained at the same level, whereas in the control group an increase in the number of isolated strains was observed. The observed stabilization of oral microbiota in patients from the study group confirms the beneficial activity of toothpaste containing EEP and TTO compared to the control group.

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Prefrontal and hippocampal atrophy using 7-tesla magnetic resonance imaging in patients with Parkinson’s disease

Acta Radiologica Open ◽

10.1177/2058460120988097 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 10 (2) ◽

pp. 205846012098809

Author(s):

Byeong H Oh ◽

Hyeong C Moon ◽

Aryun Kim ◽

Hyeon J Kim ◽

Chae J Cheong ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Magnetic Resonance Imaging ◽

Parkinson’S Disease ◽

Parkinson's Disease ◽

Magnetic Resonance ◽

7 Tesla ◽

Cortical Atrophy ◽

Automated Segmentation ◽

Healthy Controls ◽

Segmentation Method ◽

Resonance Imaging

Background The pathology of Parkinson’s disease leads to morphological changes in brain structure. Currently, the progressive changes in gray matter volume that occur with time and are specific to patients with Parkinson’s disease, compared to healthy controls, remain unclear. High-tesla magnetic resonance imaging might be useful in differentiating neurological disorders by brain cortical changes. Purpose We aimed to investigate patterns in gray matter changes in patients with Parkinson’s disease by using an automated segmentation method with 7-tesla magnetic resonance imaging. Material and Methods High-resolution T1-weighted 7 tesla magnetic resonance imaging volumes of 24 hemispheres were acquired from 12 Parkinson’s disease patients and 12 age- and sex-matched healthy controls with median ages of 64.5 (range, 41–82) years and 60.5 (range, 25–74) years, respectively. Subgroup analysis was performed according to whether axial motor symptoms were present in the Parkinson’s disease patients. Cortical volume, cortical thickness, and subcortical volume were measured using a high-resolution image processing technique based on the Desikan-Killiany-Tourville atlas and an automated segmentation method (FreeSurfer version 6.0). Results After cortical reconstruction, in 7 tesla magnetic resonance imaging volume segmental analysis, compared with the healthy controls, the Parkinson’s disease patients showed global cortical atrophy, mostly in the prefrontal area (rostral middle frontal, superior frontal, inferior parietal lobule, medial orbitofrontal, rostral anterior cingulate area), and subcortical volume atrophy in limbic/paralimbic areas (fusiform, hippocampus, amygdala). Conclusion We first demonstrated that 7 tesla magnetic resonance imaging detects structural abnormalities in Parkinson’s disease patients compared to healthy controls using an automated segmentation method. Compared with the healthy controls, the Parkinson’s disease patients showed global prefrontal cortical atrophy and hippocampal area atrophy.

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