Oral care tablet containing kiwifruit powder affects tongue coating microbiome.

OBJECTIVES: Tongue coating, a kind of biofilm formed on the tongue dorsum, is the cause of various clinical conditions, such as oral halitosis and periodontal diseases, because Fusobacterium nucleatum acts as a bridge between other oral bacteria and periodontopathogenic bacteria in biofilm formation. Our previous clinical study revealed that taking oral care tablets containing kiwifruit powder significantly reduced not only tongue-coating index and volatile sulfur compounds but also total bacteria and F. nucleatum in tongue coating. In this study, we analyzed the microbiome of tongue coating samples obtained before and after oral care tablets intake to clarify whether this tablet is a useful tool for daily tongue care. METHODS: Thirty-two healthy young adults were enrolled, and a crossover clinical trial was conducted. We instructed subjects to remove tongue coating by tongue brush for intervention I, to keep the oral care tablet containing kiwifruit powder on the tongue dorsum and to let it dissolve naturally for intervention II. Microbial DNA was isolated from the collected tongue coating samples in each subject, then 16S rRNA next-generation sequencing, operational taxonomic unit clustering, and statistical analysis were performed. RESULTS: The microbiome analysis revealed that the oral care tablet in intervention II prompted a significant change in the tongue microbiota composition, a significant reduction in the relative abundance of Prevotella and Porphyromonas, and an increase in Firmicutes/Bacteroidetes ratio when compared to that in intervention I. CONCLUSION: These results suggested that the oral care tablet might contribute to the improvement of the oral condition due to its good influence on the tongue coating microbiome.

Effectiveness of an oral care tablet containing kiwifruit powder in reducing oral bacteria in tongue coating: A crossover trial.

OBJECTIVES: The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of an oral care tablet containing kiwifruit powder on oral bacteria in tongue coating compared with tongue brushing. MATERIAL AND METHODS: Thirty-two healthy, young adults were enrolled, and a crossover clinical trial was conducted. The volatile sulfur compound (VSC) concentration, Winkel tongue-coating index (WTCI), and the number of total bacteria in addition to Fusobacterium nucleatum in tongue coating were measured. We instructed subjects to remove tongue coating by tongue brush for Intervention I, to keep the oral care tablet containing kiwifruit powder on the tongue dorsum and to let it dissolve naturally for Intervention II, and three oral care tablets 1 day before the measurement for Intervention III. RESULTS: There were significant differences in terms of the level of H2 S, VSC, and WTCI at Intervention I and all evaluation values at Intervention II. There were significant differences in terms of the level of H2 S, VSC, WTCI, the number of total bacteria, and F. nucleatum at Intervention III. The value of WTCI, the number of bacteria, and F. nucleatum decreased significantly after taking the oral care tablets than after tongue brushing. When compared with Interventions I and III, Intervention III showed the effective results; there were significant differences in the number of total bacteria and F. nucleatum between tongue brushing and taking tablets. CONCLUSIONS: These results suggested that the oral care tablet containing kiwifruit powder could be effective in reducing total bacteria and F. nucleatum in tongue coating when compared with tongue brushing.

A proliferative probiotic Bifidobacterium strain in the gut ameliorates progression of metabolic disorders via microbiota modulation and acetate elevation.

The gut microbiota is an important contributor to the worldwide prevalence of metabolic syndrome (MS), which includes obesity and diabetes. The anti-MS effects exerted by Bifidobacterium animalis ssp. lactis GCL2505 (BlaG), a highly proliferative Bifidobacterium strain in the gut, and B. longum ssp. longum JCM1217T (BloJ) were comparatively examined. BlaG treatment reduced visceral fat accumulation and improved glucose tolerance, whereas BloJ had no effect on these parameters. Gut microbial analysis revealed that BlaG exerted stronger effects on the overall bacterial structure of the gut microbiota than BloJ, including enrichment of the genus Bifidobacterium. The levels of acetate and glucagon-like peptide-1 were increased by BlaG treatment in both the gut and plasma, but not by BloJ treatment. Correlation analysis suggested that the elevation of gut acetate levels by BlaG treatment plays a pivotal role in the BlaG-induced anti-MS effects. These findings indicated that BlaG, a highly viable and proliferative probiotic, improves metabolic disorders by modulating gut microbiota, which results in the elevation of SCFAs, especially acetate.

Optimization of calcium concentration of saliva with phosphoryl oligosaccharides of calcium (POs-Ca) for enamel remineralization in vitro.

OBJECTIVE: Phosphoryl oligosaccharides of calcium (POs-Ca) are highly soluble calcium source made from potato starch. The aim of this study was to investigate the optimal concentrations of POs-Ca for the remineralization of subsurface enamel lesions in vitro. DESIGN: Demineralized bovine enamel slabs (n=5) were remineralized in vitro for 24h at 37°C with artificial saliva (AS) containing 0-0.74% POs-Ca to adjust the Ca/P ratio to 0.4-3.0, then sectioned and analysed by transversal microradiography (TMR). The data were analysed by Scheffe's post hoc test. The Ca/P ratio with most remineralization was used to investigate the effect of calcium on enamel remineralization (n=11). The demineralized slabs were treated with AS with calcium-chloride- (CaCl2-) or POs-Ca with an identical calcium content, and sectioned for TMR and wide-angle X-ray diffraction (WAXRD) analyses to evaluate the local changes in hydroxyapatite (HAp) crystal content. The data were analysed using the Mann-Whitney U-test. RESULTS: The highest mineral recovery rate resulted from addition of POs-Ca to adjust the Ca/P to 1.67. At this ratio, the mineral recovery rate for AS containing POs-Ca (24.2±7.4%) was significantly higher than that for AS containing CaCl2 (12.5±11.3%) (mean±SD, p<0.05). The recovery rate of HAp crystallites for AS containing POs-Ca (35.7±10.9%) was also significantly higher than that for AS containing CaCl2 (23.1±13.5%) (p<0.05). The restored crystallites were oriented in the same directions as in sound enamel. CONCLUSIONS: POs-Ca effectively enhances enamel remineralization with ordered HAp at a Ca/P ratio of 1.67.