Microbiome analysis of saliva from oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) patients and tobacco abusers with potential biomarkers for oral cancer screening

Oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) is the most common type of oral cancer and accounts for about 95% of all head and neck cancers with high mortality, usually at a late stage. Dysbiosis in the oral microbiome can lead to chronic inflammatory responses and may predispose to the development and progression of OSCC. Tobacco abuse plays an essential role in oral microbiome dysregulation and OSCC pathogenesis. We used 16S rRNA gene amplicon next-generation sequencing to examine microbial signatures unique to saliva from OSCC patients, tobacco abusers (TA) and controls (n = 10 for each group) to elucidate oral microbiome changes associated with tobacco abuse and OSCC. Overall, the oral microbiome compositions of class Betaproteobacteria and Epsilonproteobacteria, order Neisseriales, Burkholderiales and Campylobacterales, family Burkholderiaceae and Campylobacteraceae and genera Campylobacter and Leptotrichia revealed significant differences among OSCC patients, TA and control. Our preliminary pilot study not only serves as a basis for future studies with large sample size but also gives an indication of microbiome-based potential non-invasive biomarkers for early screening and monitoring of oral carcinogenesis transition due to tobacco abuse.