Journal of Oral Microbiology (Dec 2024)

Dysbiosis and interactions of the mycobiome and bacteriome in mucosal lesions of erosive and non-erosive oral lichen planus patients

  • Liang Beibei,
  • Wei Mengying,
  • Huo Xiao,
  • Jing Yuzi,
  • Mi Lijin,
  • Zhang Ke,
  • Yi Shengjie,
  • Liu Li

DOI
https://doi.org/10.1080/20002297.2024.2374639
Journal volume & issue
Vol. 16, no. 1

Abstract

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Background Oral lichen planus (OLP) is a common oral mucosal disease, clinically categorized into erosive OLP (EOLP) and non-erosive OLP (NEOLP) based on symptoms, but its pathogenic mechanism remains unclear. This study aims to explore the relationship between OLP and the oral microbiome.Methods We collected oral mucosal samples from 49 patients and 10 healthy individuals and conducted 16S rRNA and ITS gene sequencing to explore the oral fungal and bacterial communities.Results We observed significantly lower α diversity of fungi in the EOLP group, with Candida being significantly enriched as the main dominant genus. In the NEOLP group, Aspergillaceae were significantly enriched. The EOLP group showed significant enrichment of Aggregatibacter and Lactobacillus, but the relative abundance of Streptococcus was notably lower than in the other two groups. In the NEOLP group, two species including Prevotella intermedia were significantly enriched. The microbial co-occurrence and co-exclusion networks display distinct characteristics across the three groups, with Lactobacillus assuming a significant bridging role in the ELOP group.Conclusions Our study indicates that EOLP and NEOLP experience varying degrees of dysbiosis at both the fungal and bacterial levels. Therefore, the pathogenic mechanisms and interactive relationships of these microbiota associated with OLP merit further in-depth investigation.

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