Variations in oral health outcomes and mycobiome composition among COVID-19 convalescents
Abstract The link between gut microbiota and COVID-19 has been previously established, but the role of the oral fungal microbiota in this context remains underexplored. This study aimed to characterize the oral mycobiome of COVID-19 convalescents. Saliva samples were collected from three groups: COV...
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Nature Portfolio
2025-07-01
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| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-025-05078-x |
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| author | Katarzyna Talaga-Ćwiertnia Agnieszka Sroka-Oleksiak Barbara Brzychczy-Sroka Artur Gurgul Elżbieta Zarzecka-Francica Agnieszka Krawczyk Tomasz Gosiewski Wojciech Ostrowski Janusz Kąkol Joanna Zarzecka Monika Brzychczy-Włoch |
| author_facet | Katarzyna Talaga-Ćwiertnia Agnieszka Sroka-Oleksiak Barbara Brzychczy-Sroka Artur Gurgul Elżbieta Zarzecka-Francica Agnieszka Krawczyk Tomasz Gosiewski Wojciech Ostrowski Janusz Kąkol Joanna Zarzecka Monika Brzychczy-Włoch |
| author_sort | Katarzyna Talaga-Ćwiertnia |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Abstract The link between gut microbiota and COVID-19 has been previously established, but the role of the oral fungal microbiota in this context remains underexplored. This study aimed to characterize the oral mycobiome of COVID-19 convalescents. Saliva samples were collected from three groups: COVID-19 patients treated with antibiotics (group I), COVID-19 patients without antimicrobial treatment (group II), and healthy volunteers (group III) from the University Hospital and from the University Dental Clinic in Kraków. The samples were analyzed using next-generation sequencing (NGS) targeting the ITS-1 region. Statistically significant differences in dental indices (Plaque Index—PI, Bleeding on Probing—BOP, Winkel Tongue Coating Index—WTCI) were observed between the convalescent groups (I and II) and the control group (III). At the phylum level, significant alpha diversity differences were noted across all groups. At the genus level, alpha diversity was significant for all tested indices. Beta diversity analysis revealed no significant differences between groups I and II at either the phylum or genus levels (p > 0.05). The most abundant genera were Candida and Malassezia, with Candida being more prevalent in group I (88.11%) compared to group II (78.20%) and group III (45.81%). Linear discriminant analysis (LDA) indicated Candida as overrepresented in group I, and Malassezia as a characteristic marker in group II. Additionally, we observed the higher evenness of mold species like Aspergillus and Penicillium in the control group compared to the COVID-19 convalescents. COVID-19 convalescents, particularly those treated with antibiotics, exhibited worse oral condition compared to healthy controls, with Candida overgrowth strongly associated with antibiotic use. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-9e141277b66b4146be436e550cf104e4 |
| institution | DOAJ |
| issn | 2045-2322 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-07-01 |
| publisher | Nature Portfolio |
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| series | Scientific Reports |
| spelling | doaj-art-9e141277b66b4146be436e550cf104e42025-08-20T03:03:42ZengNature PortfolioScientific Reports2045-23222025-07-0115111510.1038/s41598-025-05078-xVariations in oral health outcomes and mycobiome composition among COVID-19 convalescentsKatarzyna Talaga-Ćwiertnia0Agnieszka Sroka-Oleksiak1Barbara Brzychczy-Sroka2Artur Gurgul3Elżbieta Zarzecka-Francica4Agnieszka Krawczyk5Tomasz Gosiewski6Wojciech Ostrowski7Janusz Kąkol8Joanna Zarzecka9Monika Brzychczy-Włoch10Department of Molecular Medical Microbiology, Chair of Microbiology, Faculty of Medicine, Jagiellonian University Medical CollegeDepartment of Molecular Medical Microbiology, Chair of Microbiology, Faculty of Medicine, Jagiellonian University Medical CollegeDepartment of Conservative Dentistry with Endodontics, Institute of Dentistry, Jagiellonian University Medical CollegeFaculty of Veterinary Medicine, The University of Agriculture in KrakówDepartment of Prosthodontics and Orthodontics, Institute of Dentistry, Jagiellonian University Medical CollegeDepartment of Molecular Medical Microbiology, Chair of Microbiology, Faculty of Medicine, Jagiellonian University Medical CollegeMicrobiome Research Laboratory, Department of Molecular Medical Microbiology, Chair of Microbiology, Faculty of Medicine, Jagiellonian University Medical CollegeDepartment of Conservative Dentistry with Endodontics, Institute of Dentistry, Jagiellonian University Medical CollegeUniversity Hospital in Cracow, Temporary COVID Ward No. 1Department of Conservative Dentistry with Endodontics, Institute of Dentistry, Jagiellonian University Medical CollegeDepartment of Molecular Medical Microbiology, Chair of Microbiology, Faculty of Medicine, Jagiellonian University Medical CollegeAbstract The link between gut microbiota and COVID-19 has been previously established, but the role of the oral fungal microbiota in this context remains underexplored. This study aimed to characterize the oral mycobiome of COVID-19 convalescents. Saliva samples were collected from three groups: COVID-19 patients treated with antibiotics (group I), COVID-19 patients without antimicrobial treatment (group II), and healthy volunteers (group III) from the University Hospital and from the University Dental Clinic in Kraków. The samples were analyzed using next-generation sequencing (NGS) targeting the ITS-1 region. Statistically significant differences in dental indices (Plaque Index—PI, Bleeding on Probing—BOP, Winkel Tongue Coating Index—WTCI) were observed between the convalescent groups (I and II) and the control group (III). At the phylum level, significant alpha diversity differences were noted across all groups. At the genus level, alpha diversity was significant for all tested indices. Beta diversity analysis revealed no significant differences between groups I and II at either the phylum or genus levels (p > 0.05). The most abundant genera were Candida and Malassezia, with Candida being more prevalent in group I (88.11%) compared to group II (78.20%) and group III (45.81%). Linear discriminant analysis (LDA) indicated Candida as overrepresented in group I, and Malassezia as a characteristic marker in group II. Additionally, we observed the higher evenness of mold species like Aspergillus and Penicillium in the control group compared to the COVID-19 convalescents. COVID-19 convalescents, particularly those treated with antibiotics, exhibited worse oral condition compared to healthy controls, with Candida overgrowth strongly associated with antibiotic use.https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-025-05078-xOral mycobiotaOral fungiCOVID-19SARS-CoV-2 recovered patientsNext generation sequencing (NGS)Mycobiome |
| spellingShingle | Katarzyna Talaga-Ćwiertnia Agnieszka Sroka-Oleksiak Barbara Brzychczy-Sroka Artur Gurgul Elżbieta Zarzecka-Francica Agnieszka Krawczyk Tomasz Gosiewski Wojciech Ostrowski Janusz Kąkol Joanna Zarzecka Monika Brzychczy-Włoch Variations in oral health outcomes and mycobiome composition among COVID-19 convalescents Scientific Reports Oral mycobiota Oral fungi COVID-19 SARS-CoV-2 recovered patients Next generation sequencing (NGS) Mycobiome |
| title | Variations in oral health outcomes and mycobiome composition among COVID-19 convalescents |
| title_full | Variations in oral health outcomes and mycobiome composition among COVID-19 convalescents |
| title_fullStr | Variations in oral health outcomes and mycobiome composition among COVID-19 convalescents |
| title_full_unstemmed | Variations in oral health outcomes and mycobiome composition among COVID-19 convalescents |
| title_short | Variations in oral health outcomes and mycobiome composition among COVID-19 convalescents |
| title_sort | variations in oral health outcomes and mycobiome composition among covid 19 convalescents |
| topic | Oral mycobiota Oral fungi COVID-19 SARS-CoV-2 recovered patients Next generation sequencing (NGS) Mycobiome |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-025-05078-x |
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