Finding May Aid Fight Against Gum Disease

Federal scientists said Tuesday they had sequenced the genome of a bacterium believed to play a major role in periodontitis, or gum disease, a finding that could lead to better approaches for prevention. Porphyromonas gingivalis is the first oral disease-causing microbe to be completely sequenced, said the National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research.

Periodontitis is a chronic infectious disease of the gums and underlying bony tissues that can cause tooth loss. More than 35 million Americans have the disease. The P. gingivalis bacterium is the first of the bacteroides group of Gram-negative anaerobes to be sequenced. These bacteria are naturally resistant to some antibiotics and are acquiring resistance to many others.

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Compiled by Times medical writer Thomas H. Maugh II