Document Type
Article
Publication Date
1-3-2024
Publication Title
PeerJ Microbiology Section
Volume
12:e16626
Pages
1-24
Publisher Name
PeerJ
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.
Recommended Citation
Tao L, Chiarelli MP, Pavlova S, Kolokythas A, Schwartz J, DeFrancesco J, Salameh B, Green SJ, Adami G. 2024. Enrichment of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon metabolizing microorganisms on the oral mucosa of tobacco users. PeerJ 12:e16626 http://doi.org/10.7717/peerj.16626
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Copyright Statement
© The Author(s), 2024
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Comments
Author Posting © The Author(s), 2024. This article is posted here by permission of PeerJ for personal use and redistribution. This article was published open access in PeerJ Microbiology Section, (January 3, 2024), https://doi.org/10.7717/peerj.16626