Microbial functional pathways based on metatranscriptomic profiling enable effective saliva-based health assessments for precision wellness.

ABSTRACT: It is increasingly recognized that an important step towards improving overall health is to accurately measure biomarkers of health from the molecular activities prevalent in the oral cavity. We present a general methodology for computationally quantifying the activity of microbial functional pathways using metatranscriptomic data. We describe their implementation as a collection of eight oral pathway scores using a large salivary sample dataset (n = 9350), and we evaluate score associations with oropharyngeal disease phenotypes within an unseen independent cohort (n = 14,129). Through this validation, we show that the relevant oral pathway scores are significantly worse in individuals with periodontal disease, acid reflux, and nicotine addiction, compared with controls. Given these associ

SUBMITTER: Patridge E 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10847690 | biostudies-literature | 2024 Dec

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature