Thaindian News

London, Oct 28 (IANS) Bugs in our mouths bring on a debilitating condition which leads to painful gums and the loosening of teeth, say researchers, in an unexpected finding that could pave the way for the development of preventative measures in tackling gum or periodontal disease.

This could work by manipulating these bugs in the same way that probiotic curd works to protect the intestine.

Researchers from the Queen Mary’s Blizard Institute and the US introduced the oral bug P. gingivalis to mice living in two different test conditions, the journal Cell Host and Microbe reported, citing a release by the institute.

Those with normal bugs in their mouths developed periodontal bone loss but the mice raised under germ-free conditions, in the absence of any normal bacteria, remained disease-free, it said.

Mike Curtis, professor and director of the Blizard Institute and study co-author, said when the P. gingivalis was introduced under normal conditions, “it stimulated the growth of normal bugs leading to a large increase in the number of those organisms already there”.

“P. gingivalis was introduced at very low levels yet it had a major affect on both the immune system and the inflammatory system,” he said.

“Now we know that periodontal disease only develops through P. gingivalis interacting with the existing bacteria in our mouths, we need to understand the role played by our normal bacteria in both the development of disease and protection from it,” Curtis said.

“This may then provide the means to develop preventative measures for the disease,” he added.