关键词: 病理性口呼吸, 唾液微生物菌群, 16S rRNA测序, 微生态失衡

Abstract: Objective    To analyze the changes in the composition and diversity of the salivary microbiota in children with pathological mouth breathing using 16S rRNA high-throughput sequencing technology. Methods    From August 2023 to August 2024，15 children with pathological mouth breathing（PMB group）and 15 children with nasal breathing（control group）were selected from the Department of Orthodontics，First Hospital of Shanxi Medical University. Non-stimulated saliva samples were collected and subjected to 16S rRNA high-throughput sequencing. The α-diversity，β-diversity，and linear discriminant analysis effect size（LEfSe）were used to compare and analyze the richness，diversity，and differences of the species in the salivary microbiota between the two groups. Results    The α‑diversity analysis revealed that both the Chao1 index and Shannon index of the salivary microbiota in the PMB group were significantly higher than those in the control group，with statistically significant differences（Z = -3.980 and -1.910，P = 0.002 and 0.041，respectively）. The β-diversity analysis showed that the two groups were relatively similar in the corresponding dimensions. LEfSe analysis indicated that the relative abundances of Sneathia，Streptobacillus，and Anaerococcus in the PMB group were significantly higher than those in the control group，with statistically significant differences（all P < 0.05）. Conclusion    Children with pathological mouth breathing exhibit increased richness and diversity of the salivary microbiota，and their specific microbial characteristics may be associated with the development of oral diseases and oral-respiratory microbial interactions.

Key words: pathological mouth breathing, salivary microbiota, 16S rRNA sequencing, dysbiosis