Koopman Jessica E, Hoogenkamp Michel A, Buijs Mark J, Brandt Bernd W, Keijser Bart J F, Crielaard Wim, Ten Cate Jacob M, Zaura Egija
Department of Preventive Dentistry, Academic Centre for Dentistry Amsterdam, University of Amsterdam and VU University Amsterdam, Gustav Mahlerlaan 3004, 1081 LA Amsterdam, The Netherlands.
Research Group Microbiology and Systems Biology, TNO Earth, Life and Social Sciences, Utrechtseweg 48, 3704 HE Zeist, The Netherlands.
Arch Oral Biol. 2017 Jan;73:79-87. doi: 10.1016/j.archoralbio.2016.09.008. Epub 2016 Sep 26.
Bacterial metabolism of arginine in the oral cavity has a pH-raising and thus, potential anti-caries effect. However, the influence of arginine on the oral microbial ecosystem remains largely unresolved.
In this pilot study, nine healthy individuals used toothpaste containing 8% arginine for eight weeks. Saliva was collected to determine arginolytic potential and sucrose metabolic activity at the Baseline, Week 4, Week 8 and after a two weeks Wash-out period. To follow the effects on microbial ecology, 16S rDNA sequencing on saliva and plaque samples at Baseline and Week 8 and metagenome sequencing on selected saliva samples of the same time-points was performed.
During the study period, the arginolytic potential of saliva increased, while the sucrose metabolism in saliva decreased. These effects were reversed during the Wash-out period. Although a few operational taxonomic units (OTUs) in plaque changed in abundance during the study period, there was no real shift in the plaque microbiome. In the saliva microbiome there was a significant compositional shift, specifically the genus Veillonella had increased significantly in abundance at Week 8.
Indeed, the presence of arginine in toothpaste affects the arginolytic capacity of saliva and reduces its sucrose metabolic activity. Additionally, it leads to a shift in the salivary microbiome composition towards a healthy ecology from a caries point of view. Therefore, arginine can be regarded as a genuine oral prebiotic.
口腔中精氨酸的细菌代谢具有提高pH值的作用，因此具有潜在的防龋效果。然而，精氨酸对口腔微生物生态系统的影响在很大程度上仍未得到解决。
在这项初步研究中，9名健康个体使用含8%精氨酸的牙膏，为期8周。在基线、第4周、第8周以及两周的洗脱期后收集唾液，以测定精氨酸分解潜力和蔗糖代谢活性。为了追踪对微生物生态学的影响，对基线和第8周时的唾液和牙菌斑样本进行16S rDNA测序，并对同一时间点的选定唾液样本进行宏基因组测序。
在研究期间，唾液的精氨酸分解潜力增加，而唾液中的蔗糖代谢减少。这些影响在洗脱期逆转。尽管在研究期间牙菌斑中的一些操作分类单元（OTU）丰度发生了变化，但牙菌斑微生物群并没有真正的转变。在唾液微生物群中存在显著的组成变化，具体而言，韦荣氏菌属在第8周时丰度显著增加。
事实上，牙膏中精氨酸的存在会影响唾液的精氨酸分解能力，并降低其蔗糖代谢活性。此外，从龋齿的角度来看，它会导致唾液微生物群组成向健康的生态方向转变。因此，精氨酸可被视为一种真正的口腔益生元。
