Mendelian Randomisation Study on Association of Gut Microbiota and Periodontitis

OBJECTIVE: Several studies have demonstrated the possible association between gut microbiota and periodontitis. The mechanism by which gut microbiota contribute to periodontitis remains unknown. METHODS: A 2-sample Mendelian randomisation (MR) study was conducted using publicly available Genome-Wide Association Studies (GWAS) data of European ancestry. The relationships between gut microbiota and tooth loss and periodontitis were assessed using summary-level data. Moreover, inverse variance weighted (IVW), MR-Egger, weighted median, and simple Mendelian were used. The results were further validated using sensitivity analyses. RESULTS: A total of 211 gut microbiota were studied, including 9 phyla, 16 classes, 20 orders, 35 families, and 131 genera. The IVW method identified 16 bacterial genera related to the risk of periodontitis and tooth loss. Lactobacillaceae was associated with an increased risk of periodontitis (odds ratio [OR], 1.40, 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.03–1.91, P<.001) and tooth loss (OR, 1.12; 95% CIs, 1.02–1.24, P = .002), whereas Lachnospiraceae UCG008 was linked to a lower risk of tooth loss (P = .041). There was no heterogeneity and horizontal pleiotropy in the sensitivity analysis. CONCLUSIONS: Several microorganisms were identified to be linked to the risk of periodontitis. Furthermore, the findings improved our understanding of gut microbiota and periodontitis pathology.