Title

Oral microbiome diversity among Cheyenne and Arapaho individuals from Oklahoma

Authors

Andrew T. Ozga, University of OklahomaFollow
Krithivasan Sankaranarayanan, University of Oklahoma
Raul Y. Tito, University of Oklahoma
Alexandra J. Obregon-Tito, University of Oklahoma
Morris W. Foster, Old Dominion University
Gloria Tallbull, University of Oklahoma
Paul Spicer, University of Oklahoma
Christina G. Warinner, University of Oklahoma
Cecil M. Lewis Jr., University of Oklahoma

Document Type

Article

Publication Date

9-20-2016

Publication Title

American Journal of Physical Anthropology

Keywords

American Indian, Native communities, 16S rRNA gene, Saliva

ISSN

0002-9483

Volume

161

First Page

321

Last Page

327

Abstract

Objectives

There is a major ascertainment bias in microbiome research, with individuals of predominately European ancestry living within metropolitan areas dominating most studies. Here we present a study of the salivary microbiome within a North American Indian community. This research is the culmination of four years of collaboration and community engagement with Cheyenne & Arapaho (C&A) tribal members from western Oklahoma.

Materials and Methods

Using 16S rRNA gene amplification and next‐generation sequencing, we generated microbial taxonomic inventories for 37 individuals representing five towns within the C&A tribes. For comparison, we performed the same laboratory techniques on saliva samples from 20 non‐native individuals (NNI) from Norman, Oklahoma.

Results

The C&A participants differ from the NNI in having reduced within‐individual species richness and higher between‐individual variation. Unsupervised clustering analyses reveal that three ecological groupings best fit the data, and while C&A individuals include assignments to all three groups, the NNI individuals are assigned to only one group. One of the ecological groups found exclusively among C&A participants was characterized by high abundance of the oral bacterial genus Prevotella.

Discussion

The C&A and NNI participants from Oklahoma have notable differences in their microbiome diversity, with a wider range of variation observed among the C&A individuals, including a higher frequency of bacteria implicated in systemic disorders. Overall, this study highlights the importance of engagement with indigenous communities, and the need for an improved understanding of human microbiome diversity among underrepresented groups and those individuals living outside of metropolitan areas.

NSUWorks Citation

Ozga, Andrew T.; Krithivasan Sankaranarayanan; Raul Y. Tito; Alexandra J. Obregon-Tito; Morris W. Foster; Gloria Tallbull; Paul Spicer; Christina G. Warinner; and Cecil M. Lewis Jr.. 2016. "Oral microbiome diversity among Cheyenne and Arapaho individuals from Oklahoma." American Journal of Physical Anthropology 161, (): 321-327. doi:10.1002/ajpa.23033.

ORCID ID

0000-0003-4540-7106

ResearcherID

D-1147-2018

DOI

10.1002/ajpa.23033