Microbial Diversity and Genetic Characterization of Cariogenic Biofilms

描述（由申请人提供）：预计拟议的研究将产生有关变形链球菌中存在特定遗传决定因素的重要新信息，变形链球菌是一种与影响幼儿的严重龋齿（称为严重幼儿龋齿或S-ECC）密切相关的微生物。这些信息的长期利益应该引导研究人员设计针对牙科的诊断和预防策略，尽管更好地了解其微生物原因。利用抑制性差减DNA杂交的强大技术，第一个具体的目标是测试假设，S。与无龋（CF）儿童中发现的菌株相比，S-ECC儿童中发现的变异株的遗传组成不同。将对S-ECC菌株特异性的独特遗传基因座进行鉴定和表征。这些基因位点中的一些将被证明是健康或疾病的生物标志物。使用多个测试分析的力量衍生人工智能编程;生物标志物将被用作能够对S.两种类型之一的变异（S-ECC或CF）。本研究的第二个目的是调查S.与S-ECC或CF状态相关的已知或疑似遗传元件被认为影响S.变异人第三个目的是调查更大的，种族/民族多样化的S-ECC或CF儿童人群中是否存在前两个目的中确定的生物标志物。预计这项研究将产生疾病的遗传标记，能够为临床医生提供诊断测试，可以评估发展S-ECC的风险。7.

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): The proposed studies are anticipated to yield important new information as to the presence of specific genetic determinants found in Streptococcus mutans, a microbe strongly associated with a severe dental caries in affecting young children called severe early childhood caries or S-ECC. The long-term benefit of such information should lead researchers toward devising both diagnostic and preventive strategies against dental though better understanding its microbial causation. Using a powerful technique of suppressive subtraction DNA hybridization, the first specific aim is to test the hypothesis that strains of S. mutans found in S-ECC children differ in genetic composition compared to strains found in caries-free (CF) children. Unique genetic loci that are specific to S-ECC strains will be identified and characterized. Some of these genetic loci will prove informative as biomarkers for health or disease. Using the power of multiple test analyses derived artificial intelligence programming; biomarkers will be used as the basis for a modeling algorithm capable of classifying strains of S. mutans in one of two categories (S-ECC or CF). The second aim of this study is to survey strains of S. mutans associated with either S-ECC or CF status for known or suspected genetic elements thought to influence the pathogenesis or virulence of S. mutans. The third aim is to survey a larger, racial/ethnical diverse population of S-ECC or CF children for the presence or absence of the biomarkers identified in the first two aims. It is anticipated that this research will yield genetic markers for disease capable of providing clinicians with a diagnostic test that can assess risk for developing S-ECC. 7.