MICROBIOTA OF CHILDREN WITH ORAL HEALTH DISPARITIES

该提案的长期目标是提供一个良好的科学基础，以制定治疗方案，改善口腔健康差异的儿童和青少年的牙齿健康。本项目的目的是检查与儿童龋齿相关的口腔微生物群，寻找与儿童和青少年疾病增加相关并可以解释的差异，以及人口口腔健康差异中种族和社会经济群体的差异。将监测一系列可能与龋齿相关的菌种，包括变形链球菌、几种放线菌和双歧杆菌，以及选定的牙周病原体。第一个目标是使用DNA探针棋盘测定法评估幼儿和青少年的微生物群。将评估不同年龄、种族或民族以及社会经济群体中微生物物种与龋齿的关联。儿童期口腔微生物群的发育顺序可能在有疾病和无疾病的儿童中有所不同。成年人的口腔健康状况不佳可能是基于儿童和青少年的微生物群，并且可以从儿童和青少年的微生物群中预测。第二个目标是将龋齿的检测从牙科诊所转移到儿科医生那里。一个简单的微生物采样方法将评估其能力，以提高检测幼儿龋齿。第三个目标是评估严重幼儿龋齿的微生物群，这是儿童中最普遍的口腔感染，可能影响儿童的整体健康。目的是评估综合治疗是否将微生物群改变为无龋儿童的微生物群，以及治疗后对龋相关物种（包括变形链球菌）的抑制如何与治疗成功相关。来自该项目的信息应该澄清与儿童龋齿相关的微生物群。具有临床重要性的是，该项目旨在通过评估儿童龋齿的改进诊断和风险评估，寻求促进改善服务不足人群牙齿健康的方法，以便有效治疗最需要的儿童和青少年。

The long-term goal of this proposal is to provide a sound scientific basis on which to devise therapy regimens that can improve dental health of children and adolescents with oral health disparities. The objective of the current project is to examine the oral microbiota associated with dental caries in children, seeking differences that associate with and could explain increase d disease in children and adolescents, and differences in racial and socioeconomic groups in a population oral health disparities. A range of possible caries-associated species will be monitored including the mutans streptococci, several Actinomyces and Bifidobacterium, species, and selected periodontal pathogens. The first aim evaluates the microbiota of young children and adolescents using a DNA probe checkerboard assay. The association of microbial species with caries in different age, racial or ethnic, and socioeconomic groups, will be evaluated. The sequence of development of the oral microbiota in childhood may differ in children with and without disease. It is possible that poor oral health of adults with oral health disparities is based on, and could be predicted from the microbiota of childhood and adolescence. The second aim takes detection of caries out of the dental office into that of the pediatrician. A simple microbial sampling method will be evaluated for its ability to improve detection of early childhood caries. The third aim evaluates the microbiota of severe early childhood caries, the most prevalent oral infection in children that can impact children's general health. The aim evaluates whether comprehensive therapy changes the microbiota to that of caries-free children, and how the suppression of caries-associated species, including Streptococcus mutans, post-therapy, are associated with success of treatment. Information from this project should clarify the microbiota associated with childhood caries. OF clinical importance this project seeks ways facilitate improvement of dental health of under-served populations directed by evaluating improved diagnosis and risk assessment of childhood caries so effective therapy can be directed to children and adolescents most in need.