Oral Commensals in Healthy Individuals: A Clinicocytological Study

TL;DR

This study identifies and tracks commensal bacteria in the mouths of healthy individuals to understand their stability and potential role in health or disease.

Contribution

The study provides a detailed characterization of oral commensal bacteria in healthy individuals and their consistency over time.

Findings

Coagulase-negative staphylococcus species were the most common oral commensals (85%).

Bacterial colonies remained consistent in the same individuals over ten days.

Gram-positive cocci dominated the oral commensal population.

Abstract

Background

Each human being has a specific group of microorganisms that are necessary for both sustaining health and causing illness. Normally, these microorganisms maintain bio-communalism, do not harm the host, and lead to a state known as symbiosis or eubiosis. The commensal nature of these bacteria is always maintained in symbiosis and attains pathogenic potential when there is an imbalance between host immunity and microorganisms. Our study focuses on the identification and differentiation of the various commensals present in the oral cavity of healthy individuals over a given period of time.

Aims and objectives

This study aims to: (i) identify various commensal bacterial species present in the oral cavity; (ii) differentiate each commensal bacterial species present in the oral cavity of healthy individuals using cytological and culturing methods; (iii) identify the presence of different types of commensal bacterial species in the same individuals with the specific time intervals; (iv) compare and correlate the presence or absence of bacterial species present as a commensal in both male and female; (v) identify and characterize the commensal bacterial species present in the oral cavity of healthy individuals; (vi) investigate the consistency of commensal bacterial species presence over time and between genders.

Methodology

We included sixty healthy individuals between the ages of 20 and 24 from both genders, took buccal smears once every two days for ten days, stained them with Gram stain, and grew them in blood agar and Mac Conkey agar.

Results

The most common commensals include Gram-positive cocci, and among them, Coagulase-negative staphylococcus species (85%) are predominant, followed by Staphylococcus aureus (13.33%), and Streptococcus species (1.67%). The presence of colonies remains the same in all three samples obtained from the same healthy individuals.

Conclusion

Loss of balance between commensals and pathogens can lead to dysbiosis, which results in disease.

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