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Characterization of Aggregatibacter actinomycetemcomitans strains in periodontitis patients in Germany

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Abstract

Objectives

Aggregatibacter actinomycetemcomitans strains of serotype b and with a deletion of 530 bp in the promoter region of the leukotoxin gene (JP2 clone) are known to be associated with severe periodontitis. Our study was aimed to detect virulence genes of A. actinomycetemcomitans strains obtained from patients living in four German cities with different proportions of immigrants.

Material and methods

Samples were obtained from severe periodontitis patients in Frankfurt, Hamburg, Leipzig, and Jena. Those being tested positive for A. actinomycetemcomitans were analyzed for serotypes, deletion in the promoter region of the leukotoxin gene, presence of cytolethal distending toxin encoding genes (cdtA, cdtB, and cdtC) and fibril gene1(flp-1).

Results

From all 99 A. actinomycetemcomitans-positive samples, the JP2 clone was found in two immigrants in Frankfurt. Seventy strains were tested positive for the cdtA, 52 for cdtB, and 92 for cdtC and flp-1 genes. Twenty-five strains belonged to serotype a, 22 to serotype b, 21 to serotype c, 31 to the others or could not be serotyped, respectively. The distribution of the serotypes differed between the cities. Further, differences regarding the serotypes were also significant between natives and immigrants.

Conclusions

The JP2 clone is not spread within the Caucasian inhabitants in German cities. The serotypes distribution seems to be influenced by the numbers of immigrants in the cities.

Clinical Relevance

Patients originated from North Africa should be especially screened for the presence of the deletion in the ltx promoter region.

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Acknowledgments

The authors wish to thank Claudia Ranke, Hanna Loester, and Christopher Buchmann for their valuable laboratory work. Further we are grateful to Rolf Claesson (University of Umeå, Sweden) for providing us with control strains of A. actinomycetemcomitans.

Conflict of interest

Most of the study was institutionally founded. Further, this study was supported by Hain Lifescience GmbH, Nehren, Germany. The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Conservative Dentistry and Periodontology, Medical Faculty, University of Leipzig, Nürnberger Str. 57, 04103, Leipzig, Germany

    Holger Jentsch

  2. Department of Restorative and Preventive Dentistry, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, Hamburg, Germany

    Georg Cachovan

  3. Department of Conservative Dentistry, Jena University Hospital, Jena, Germany

    Arndt Guentsch

  4. Department of Periodontology, Center for Dental, Oral, and Maxillofacial Medicine (Carolinum), Johann Wolfgang Goethe-University Frankfurt am Main, Frankfurt am Main, Germany

    Peter Eickholz

  5. Institute of Medical Microbiology, Jena University Hospital, Jena, Germany

    Wolfgang Pfister

  6. Department of Periodontology, Laboratory of Oral Microbiology, Dental School, University of Bern, Bern, Switzerland

    Sigrun Eick

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  1. Holger Jentsch
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  2. Georg Cachovan
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  3. Arndt Guentsch
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  4. Peter Eickholz
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Correspondence to Holger Jentsch.

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Holger Jentsch and Georg Cachovan contributed equally to this manuscript.

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Jentsch, H., Cachovan, G., Guentsch, A. et al. Characterization of Aggregatibacter actinomycetemcomitans strains in periodontitis patients in Germany. Clin Oral Invest 16, 1589–1597 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00784-012-0672-x

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