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Tao L, Chiarelli MP, Pavlova S, Kolokythas A, Schwartz J, DeFrancesco J, Salameh B, Green SJ, Adami G. Enrichment of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon metabolizing microorganisms on the oral mucosa of tobacco users. PeerJ 2024; 12:e16626. [PMID: 38188172 PMCID: PMC10771095 DOI: 10.7717/peerj.16626] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/23/2023] [Accepted: 11/16/2023] [Indexed: 01/09/2024] Open
Abstract
Certain soil microbes resist and metabolize polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs). The same is true for a subset of skin microbes. In the human mouth, oral microbes have the potential to oxidize tobacco PAHs, thereby increasing these chemicals' ability to cause cancer of adjacent epithelium. We hypothesized that we could identify, in smokers, the oral mucosal microbes that can metabolize PAH. We isolated bacteria and fungi that survived long-term in minimal media with PAHs as the sole carbon source, under aerobic conditions, from the oral mucosa in 17 of 26 smokers and two of 14 nonsmokers. Of bacteria genera that survived harsh PAH exposure in vitro, most were found at trace levels, except for Staphylococcus, Actinomyces, and Kingella, which were more abundant. Two PAH-resistant strains of Candida albicans (C. albicans) were isolated from smokers. C. albicans was a prime candidate to contribute to carcinogenesis in tobacco users as it is found orally at high levels in tobacco users on the mucosa, and some Candida species can metabolize PAHs. However, when C. albicans isolates were tested for metabolism of two model PAH substrates, pyrene and phenanthrene, they were not capable, suggesting they cannot metabolize PAH under the conditions used. In conclusion, evidence for large scale microbial degradation of tobacco PAHs under aerobic conditions on the oral mucosa remains lacking, though nonabundant PAH metabolizers are certainly present.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lin Tao
- Department of Oral Biology, College of Dentistry, University of Illinois Chicago, Chicago, IL, United States of America
| | - M Paul Chiarelli
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Loyola University of Chicago, Chicago, IL, United States of America
| | - Sylvia Pavlova
- Department of Oral Biology, College of Dentistry, University of Illinois Chicago, Chicago, IL, United States of America
| | - Antonia Kolokythas
- Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, Eastman Institute for Oral Health, University of Rochester, Rochester, NY, United States of America
| | - Joel Schwartz
- Oral Medicine and Diagnostic Sciences, University of Illinois Chicago, Chicago, IL, United States of America
| | - James DeFrancesco
- Forensic Science Program — Department of Criminal Justice, Loyola University of Chicago, Chicago, IL, United States of America
| | - Benjamin Salameh
- Oral Medicine and Diagnostic Sciences, University of Illinois Chicago, Chicago, IL, United States of America
| | - Stefan J. Green
- DNA Sequencing Core, Research Resources Center, University of Illinois Chicago, Chicago, IL, United States of America
| | - Guy Adami
- Oral Medicine and Diagnostic Sciences, University of Illinois Chicago, Chicago, IL, United States of America
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