Fig 7. Partial least-squares analysis (PLS) of microbiota associated with 12 weeks consumption of L. reuteri.

(A) Scatter-loading plot illustrating clustering of baseline versus 12 week treatment samples from the test group; The scores t1 and t2 are the new PCA created variables summarizing the x-variables. The red dots indicate placebo samples and blue dots test samples. The oval circle illustrates the tolerance ellipse based on Hotelling´s of T2, any observation located outside of the elipse would be an outlier. (B) Loading plot illustrating taxa associated with baseline versus 12 week treatment in the test group. The PLS model employed test and placebo group allocation as y and pyrosequencing taxa, L. reuteri and S. mutans by cultivation and PCR as the x-block. Red triangles indicate taxa associated with the baseline microbiota in the test group and blue triangles those associated with the microbiota after 12 week treatment in the same group. Black symbols indicate variables that were non-influential in the projection.