AimThe oral microenvironment contributes to microbial composition and immune equilibrium. It is considered to be influenced by dietary habits. Phenylketonuria (PKU) patients, who follow a lifelong low‐protein diet, exhibit higher prevalence of oral diseases such as periodontitis, offering a suitable model to explore the interplay between diet, oral microbiota and oral health.Materials and MethodsWe conducted 16S rDNA sequencing on saliva and subgingival plaque from 109 PKU patients (ages 6–68 years) and 114 age‐matched controls and correlated oral microbial composition and dental health.ResultsPKU patients exhibited worse dental health, reduced oral microbial diversity and a difference in the abundance of specific taxa, especially Actinobacteriota species, compared to controls. PKU patients with poor periodontal health exhibited higher alpha diversity than the orally healthy ones, marked by high abundance of the genus Tannerella. Notably, the observed taxonomic differences in PKU patients with normal indices of decayed/missing/filled teeth, plaque control record, gingival bleeding index and periodontal screening and recording index generally differed from microbial signatures of periodontitis.ConclusionsPKU patients' reduced microbial diversity may be due to their diet's metabolic challenges disrupting microbial and immune balance, thus increasing oral inflammation. Higher alpha diversity in PKU patients with oral inflammation is likely related to expanded microbial niches.

中文翻译：

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苯丙酮尿症患者的口腔微生物群：一项基于全国的横断面研究


目的口腔微环境有助于微生物组成和免疫平衡。它被认为受饮食习惯的影响。苯丙酮尿症 （PKU） 患者终生遵循低蛋白饮食，牙周炎等口腔疾病的患病率较高，为探索饮食、口腔微生物群和口腔健康之间的相互作用提供了一个合适的模型。材料和方法我们对 109 名 PKU 患者 （6-68 岁） 和 114 名年龄匹配的对照者的唾液和龈下牙菌斑进行了 16S rDNA 测序，并将口腔微生物组成与牙齿健康相关联。结果与对照组相比，PKU 患者的牙齿健康状况较差，口腔微生物多样性降低，特定分类群（尤其是放线杆菌属）的丰度存在差异。牙周健康状况不佳的 PKU 患者表现出比口腔健康患者更高的 α 多样性，其特征是 Tannerella 属的高丰度。值得注意的是，在蛀牙/缺失/补牙指数正常、牙菌斑控制记录、牙龈出血指数和牙周筛查记录指数正常的 PKU 患者中观察到的分类学差异通常与牙周炎的微生物特征不同。结论PKU 患者微生物多样性减少可能是由于饮食的代谢挑战破坏了微生物和免疫平衡，从而增加了口腔炎症。口腔炎症 PKU 患者较高的 α 多样性可能与微生物生态位扩大有关。