Alterations in the human oral microbiota in systemic lupus erythematosus

BACKGROUND: Alterations in oral microbiota in patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is less evaluated. The aim of this study was to compare the characteristics of the oral microbiome in SLE patients and healthy controls, and construct an SLE classifier based on the oral microbiota. METHODS: We sequenced tongue-coating samples of individuals in treatment-naïve SLE (n = 182) and matched healthy controls (n = 280). We characterized the oral microbiome and constructed a microbial classifier in the derivation cohort and validated the results in the validation cohorts. Furthermore, the oral microbiome of posttreatment SLE (n = 73) was characterized. RESULTS: The oral microbial diversity of SLE was increased, and the microbial community was different between SLE and healthy controls. The genera Prevotella and Veillonella were enriched, while Streptococcus and Porphyromonas were reduced in SLE. In addition, an increase was noted in 27 predicted microbial functions, while a decrease was noted in 34 other functions. Thirty-nine operational taxonomy units (OTUs) were identified to be related with seven clinical indicators. Two OTUs were identified to construct a classifier, which yielded area under the curve values of 0.9166 (95% CI 0.8848–0.9483, p < 0.0001), 0.8422 (95% CI 0.7687–0.9157, p < 0.0001), and 0.8406 (95% CI 0.7677–0.9135, p < 0.0001) in the derivation, validation, and cross-regional validation groups, respectively. Moreover, as disease activity increased, Abiotrophia and Lactobacillales increased, while Phyllobacterium and unclassified Micrococcusaceae decreased. Finally, nine OTUs were selected to construct a classifier distinguishing posttreatment SLE patients from healthy controls, which achieved a diagnostic efficacy of 0.9942 (95% CI 0.9884–1, p < 0.0001). CONCLUSIONS: Our study comprehensively characterizes the oral microbiome of SLE and shows the potential of the oral microbiota as a non-invasive diagnostic biomarker in SLE. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s12967-023-03892-3.