Brushing your teeth is also “good” for the lungs – breaking latest news

Brushing your teeth could not only prevent tooth decay and gum disease, but also protect the lungs. It is the new line of studies that Randi Bertelsenresearcher at the Department of Clinical Sciences of the University of Bergen (Norway), is carrying out with a group of colleagues engaged in the BRuSH project (acronym for Oral Bacteria as determinants for ReSpiratory Health, i.e. oral bacteria as determinants of respiratory health) funded with 1.5 million euros under the European Cordis program.

The link with coronary heart disease

The link between gum disease-causing bacteria and some coronary heart disease has long been discovered. In fact, it is suspected that these microorganisms can enter the bloodstream and reach the heart. This would explain why some of those found in infected gums, such as the Porphyromonas gingivalis
and it Streptococcus mutans
, also appear in the heart tissue. More and more evidence now indicates that mouth health could also be closely linked to lung disease.

‘The purpose of the BruSH project is precisely to explore the link between oral bacteria and poor lung health,’ explains Dr Bertelsen. How? “Bacteria nested in deep periodontal pockets can break down the gum lining of the epithelium and this can lead to their systemic spread to distant organs, ”emphasizes Dr Bertelsen. «Many common chronic lung diseases such as asthma and BPCO
(chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, ndr) are caused by inflammation of the lungs, and therefore also linked to periodontal disease which is in turn characterized by inflammation “.

Previous investigations

The project involves hundreds of people who participated in another study: the European Community Respiratory Health Survey (ECRHS, i.e. European Community Respiratory Health Survey). The health of their respiratory system was monitored over the past 20 years and, about 10 years ago, gum tissue samples were taken. ‘This is a multicentre community research started around 1990 with 56 hospitals and universities across Europe participating in the baseline study on adults aged 20-44. Since, participants received two more follow-ups (controls over time, ed) and a quarter are currently underway in some centers. This makes it possible to have longitudinal data available: oral microbiome collected during the last check-up and new data on lung function and disease status obtained now, ”she stresses.

Gene sequencing

It will also appeal to the bacterial DNA sequencing. “It is useful for get an overview of all microorganisms present on a site. We can use the sequences to search for them in the databases (these are “libraries” on the DNA that tell us which bacteria the sequence is likely to come from) and also to get an idea of ​​the functions that the bacteria perform ». Studies so far have investigated this possible link only in severely ill BPCO patients. For this reason, BRuSH will proceed to recruit young patients with mild to moderate gum disease without any lung disease. Dentists will carefully remove inflammatory oral bacteria, which is the traditional treatment for periodontitis. Blood and saliva samples will then be collected before and after the procedure. “We want to see if eliminating these microorganisms in a relatively young population before the onset of respiratory diseases improves lung function,” says Randi Bertelsen.

The impact on patients

From a practical point of view, what kind of impact will the project have? “In a public health perspective, improving oral hygiene may become an achievable goal for intervention programs aimed at improving lung health and preventing respiratory diseases and possibly other chronic conditions as well. “We hope this can help make more people live longer and with a good quality of life“. But the impact of the BRuSH project could be even greater. “Both periodontal and chronic lung diseases, such as asthma and BPCO, will increase in the coming years due to the increase in life expectancy and the aging of the population”, emphasizes the researcher.

Social status and inequalities

‘Furthermore, both diseases occur more often in less economically viable groups and lead to a worse quality of life. The deterioration in dental treatment is more pronounced among individuals of low social status and social inequalities in dental health and the use of dental care services are evident in many countries ”. Nor does Norway escape this dynamic, where health care is also free. “A
Going to the dentist here is very expensive and those in their twenties often don’t go to see them unless they have a problem, ”says the Norwegian researcher. Evidence of a causal relationship will highlight the importance of good dental health. Strategies to promote dental health, such as increased awareness and subsidization of dental care for low-income groups, can therefore reduce socio-health inequalities», conclude.

Salivary tests to detect infections

Bacteria in saliva may someday provide researchers with information not only about lung health, but about other diseases as well. The idea would consist in test salivary secretions right away, without the need for sophisticated and expensive laboratory tests. As reported in an article in Horizon, the European Commission’s magazine on research and innovation, this is the goal of the research project SALSETH
: use very small quantities of liquid, with few reagents, for perform fast and cheap tests thanks to microfluidics. Many viral infections such as hepatitis A, B, C; Epstein-Barr virus and herpes have detectable biomarkers in salivary samples. It is thought that saliva could also be used to assess levels of testosterone, the male sex hormone, or cortisol, the stress hormone. Or to make it easier to monitor women on HRT and discover some autoimmune diseases, such as celiac disease, cystic fibrosis or Sjogren’s syndrome.

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