AUTHOR=Villhauer Alissa , Lynch David , Warren John , Drake David 

TITLE=Assessment of Diversity and Fidelity of Transmission of Streptococcus mutans Genotypes in American Indian and Southeast Iowa Mother-Child Dyads

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Dental Medicine

VOLUME=Volume 3 - 2022

YEAR=2022

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/dental-medicine/articles/10.3389/fdmed.2022.871185

DOI=10.3389/fdmed.2022.871185

ISSN=2673-4915

ABSTRACT=Early childhood caries (ECC) is a common chronic infectious disease of childhood with a complex etiology and many contributing risk factors. Its prevalence is greater in certain racial and ethnic minority groups and populations with low socioeconomic status. Among the species of bacteria that contribute to the progression of dental caries, Streptococcus mutans (SM) has long been considered a primary etiological agent of the disease. We report here on the genotypic diversity, commonality, and fidelity of transmission of S. mutans in mother-child dyads in two high-risk populations.
Methods: Thirty-eight mother-child dyads from a Southeast Iowa population and 40 dyads from a Northern Plains American Indian Tribe were selected for a comparison of S. mutans genotype profiles within and between populations. S. mutans was isolated from whole mouth plaque samples collected from each subject. DNA was extracted and AP-PCR using OPA2 primer was performed. Amplified DNA was electrophoresed and images of the resulting patterns were compared via GelCompar ®IIv6.5 software. Thirty unique S. mutans genotypes were identified from the 1638 S. mutans isolates analyzed.
Results: Fifteen genotypes were seen in both cohorts, while 11 were unique to the American Indian (AI) cohort and 4 were unique to the Southeast Iowa (SEI) population. Fifty-seven percent of AI children and 23% of SEI children displayed fidelity of transmission of ≥1 S. mutans genotype.  In comparing the populations, we observed large variation in genotypic diversity and fidelity of transmission, while the amount of commonality seen in both cohorts was similarly high.
Conclusion: This study furthers our understanding of the genotypic diversity of S. mutans in both of these populations and provides a basis for further comparison to other populations at greater risk for developing ECC.