Sociodemographic patterning in the oral microbiome of a diverse sample of New Yorkers

Background: Variations in the human oral microbiome are implicated in a range of conditions including diabetes and systemic inflammation, and may potentially mediate health inequalities in these conditions. Existing studies of the oral microbiome are based on samples with minimal sociodemographic diversity, limiting knowledge of underlying population variation and ultimately how differences in microbial profiles may be associated with health outcomes. This study describes sociodemographic patterning of the oral microbiome in a diverse sample of New York City residents. Methods: Data come from a subsample of 296 respondents from the 2013-14 New York City Health and Nutrition Examination Study (NYC-HANES), a population-based representative study of New York City adults. Oral mouthwash samples were processed by amplicon sequencing targeting the V4 region of the 16S rRNA gene. We examined associations between the structure and diversity of the oral microbiome and sociodemographic variables including age, gender, income, education, nativity, and race/ethnicity. Results: A total of 79 operational taxonomic units (OTUs) were differentially abundant by any sociodemographic variable (false discovery rate < 0.01), including 52 by age group, 27 by race/ethnicity, 14 by income, 14 by education, 12 by nativity, and 5 by gender. Twenty-one genera differed for more than one sociodemographic characteristic including Lactobacillus (7), Prevotella (6), Porphyromonas (5), and Fusobacterium (4). Education (p=0.03) and age (p=0.02) were associated with major shifts in community structure as measured by UniFrac distances. Discussion: In a diverse population-based sample, we identified important sociodemographic variations in several taxa of the oral microbiome, with associations consistent with health inequalities. Further investigation is warranted into possible mediating effects of the oral microbiome in social disparities in diabetes, inflammation, oral health, and preterm