Based on the results of a study led by Antonio Nanci, researcher and professor in the Department of Stomatology at the University of Montreal, and the collaboration of researcher Charline Mari, as well as several colleagues from Laval University and McGill University, it has been observed that a gum protein that fights the bacterium P. gingivalis may help prevent Alzheimer’s disease.
The importance of balancing the oral microbiome
The oral environment is the second most important microbiome in the body; in fact, several studies, such as the one led by Nanci, have determined that its condition has a direct impact not only on the health of the oral cavity, but also on general health.
Nanci’s study, which has been published in Scientific Reports of the journal Nature, has revealed that a protein present in the gingival epithelium may have antimicrobial properties against Porphyromonas gingivalis, a key pathogen in periodontal disease and whose presence can lead to systemic or neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer’s disease.
It is believed that overgrowth of P. gingivalis bacteria, which is part of the composition of oral biofilm, can alter the body’s immune response and increase the proliferation of oral biofilm to the point of causing biological disorders leading to pathologies such as periodontal disease, which in turn can lead to diseases related to general health rather than exclusively oral health, such as Alzheimer’s disease.
The research suggests that the secretory phosphoprotein produced by the gingival epithelium to promote its adhesion to teeth, rich in proline and glutamine 1, is bactericidal, and they focused their research on this antibacterial potential and the identification of its active parts.
They came to the following conclusions:
- In silico analysis demonstrated molecular parallelism with antimicrobial peptides.
- Incubation of Porphyromonas gingivalis with the full-length protein decreased bacterial numbers, aggregate formation and membrane alterations.
- Analysis of peptides derived from SCPPQ1 indicated that these effects are maintained in specific regions of the molecule.
These results suggest that this phosphoprotein has indeed antibacterial capacity, which opens new doors of research into its mechanism of action. Antonio Nanci: “The antibacterial potential of this protein could be used not only to limit periodontal disease, but also as a treatment approach to control the effects of bacteria in the brain or other sites to which they spread”.
The main risk factors for developing this disease include age, high blood pressure, hypercholesterolemia, obesity, sedentary lifestyle, smoking and diabetes.
