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. 2020 Aug 6;15(8):e0237185. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0237185

Serum IgG titers to periodontal pathogens predict 3-month outcome in ischemic stroke patients

Shiro Aoki 1, Naohisa Hosomi 2,3,*, Hiromi Nishi 4, Masahiro Nakamori 5, Tomohisa Nezu 1, Yuji Shiga 1, Naoto Kinoshita 1, Hiroki Ueno 1, Kenichi Ishikawa 1,5, Eiji Imamura 5, Tomoaki Shintani 6, Hiroki Ohge 7, Hiroyuki Kawaguchi 4, Hidemi Kurihara 6,8, Hirofumi Maruyama 1
Editor: Kazunori Toyoda9
PMCID: PMC7410289  PMID: 32760103

Abstract

Several cohort studies have shown that periodontal disease is associated with an increased risk for stroke. However, it remains unclear whether serum antibody titers for a specific periodontal pathogen are associated with outcome after ischemic stroke, and which kinds of pathogens are associated with ischemic stroke. We examined the relationship between serum IgG titers to periodontal pathogens and outcome in ischemic stroke patients. A total of 445 patients with acute ischemic stroke (194 female [44.0%], mean age 71.9±12.3 years) were registered in this study. Serum IgG titers to 9 periodontal pathogens (Porphyromonas gingivalis, Aggregatibacter actinomycetemcomitans, Prevotella intermedia, Prevotella nigrescens, Fusobacterium nucleatum, Treponema denticola, Tannerella forsythensis, Campylobacter rectus, Eikenella corrodens) were evaluated using the enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) method. An unfavorable outcome was defined as a 3 or higher on the modified Rankin Scale. The proportion of patients with unfavorable outcome was 25.4% (113 patients). Based on multivariate logistic regression analysis, numbers of IgG antibodies positive for periodontal pathogens (odds ratio 1.20, 95% CI 1.02–1.41, p = 0.03) were independent predictors of unfavorable outcome in ischemic stroke patients.

Introduction

Periodontal disease is a persistent bacterial infection causing chronic inflammation in periodontal tissues that is characterized by loss of connective tissue and alveolar bone support, leading to tooth loss [1]. The prevalence of periodontal disease is very high. Approximately >90% of the world population have mild to advanced periodontal disease.

Several cohort studies have shown that periodontal disease is associated with an increased risk of stroke [25]. A recent meta-analysis of 2 cohort studies found that periodontal disease increased the risk of ischemic stroke by 1.6-fold [6]. Furthermore, the Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities (ARIC) cohort study of 10362 stroke-free participants over a 15-year follow-up period demonstrated that periodontal disease was significantly associated with incidence of cardioembolic and thrombotic stroke, and regular dental care was related to lower adjusted stroke risk [7]. Periodontal disease has been established as one of the risk factors of ischemic stroke.

Measurement of serum antibody titers to a specific periodontal pathogen is considered to reflect its involvement in the disease process and has been used as one of the criteria required to identify causative organisms [8]. Recently, serum antibody titers related to a specific periodontal pathogen have been shown to indicate the risk factor of systemic diseases, such as coronary heart disease, non-alcoholic fatty liver disease and Alzheimer's disease [911]. We also previously reported that serum antibody titers related to a specific periodontal pathogen were associated with atrial fibrillation and carotid artery atherosclerosis [12].

However, it remains unclear whether serum antibody titers to periodontal pathogens can predict outcome after ischemic stroke. In this study, we examined the relationship between serum IgG titers to periodontal pathogens and outcome in ischemic stroke patients.

Materials and methods

Subjects

Consecutive acute ischemic stroke patients who were admitted to Hiroshima University Hospital and Suiseikai Kajikawa Hospital from January 2013 to April 2016 were enrolled in this prospective study. The study protocols were approved by the ethics committee of Hiroshima University Hospital and Suiseikai Kajikawa Hospital, and the study was performed according to the guidelines of the national government based on the Helsinki Declaration of 1964. Written informed consent was obtained from all patients or their relatives. All data analyses were blinded.

Data acquisition

Imaging analysis by computed tomography or magnetic resonance imaging was performed in all patients for diagnosis. Baseline clinical characteristic data, including age, sex, drinking and smoking habits, comorbidities (hypertension, diabetes mellitus, dyslipidemia, atrial fibrillation), past history of stroke, and C-reactive protein (CRP) levels were collected from all patients. Ischemic stroke subtypes were classified using the Trial of Org 10172 in Acute Stroke Treatment (TOAST) criteria [13] by stroke specialists. Stroke severity on admission was evaluated using the National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale (NIHSS) scores. Hypertension was defined as use of anti-hypertensive medication before admission or confirmed blood pressure of ≥140/90 mmHg at rest measured 2 weeks after onset. Diabetes mellitus was defined as glycated hemoglobin level of ≥6.5%, fasting blood glucose level of ≥126 mg/dL, or use of anti-diabetes medication. Dyslipidemia was defined as total cholesterol level of ≥220 mg/dL, low-density lipoprotein cholesterol level of ≥140 mg/dL, high-density lipoprotein cholesterol level of <40 mg/dL, triglyceride levels of ≥150 mg/dL, or use of anti-hyperlipidemia medication. Atrial fibrillation was defined as follows: (1) a history of sustained or paroxysmal atrial fibrillation or (2) atrial fibrillation detection on arrival or during admission. Renal function was calculated with the estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) using a revised equation for the Japanese population as follows: eGFR (mL min−1 1.73 m−2) = 194 × (serum creatinine)−1.094 × (age)−0.287 × 0.739 (for women) [14]. Chronic kidney disease was defined as an eGFR<60 mL min−1 1.73 m−2. When we evaluated the 3-month outcome, patients who were disabled prior to stroke incidence (corresponding to premorbid modified Rankin scale [mRS] score ≥2) were excluded. An unfavorable 3-month outcome was defined as a 3 or higher on the mRS.

Measurement of serum antibody titers to periodontal pathogens

Serum IgG antibody titers to periodontal pathogens were determined using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) as described previously [10]. Serum samples were collected from the patients within 3 days after stroke occurrence, and were stored at −80°C. Sonicated preparations of the following periodontal pathogens were used as bacterial antigens Porphyromonas gingivalis, Aggregatibacter actinomycetemcomitans, Prevotella intermedia, Prevotella nigrescens, Fusobacterium nucleatum, Treponema denticola, Tannerella forsythia, Campylobacter rectus, and Eikenella corrodens. These pathogens were representative periodontal pathogens that were previously reported to be associated with serum antibody titers and stroke outcome [15]. Serum from 5 healthy subjects were pooled and used for calibration. Using serial dilutions of pooled control serum, the standard reaction was defined based on ELISA units (EU), such that 100 EU corresponded to 1:3200 dilution of the calibrator sample. For statistical analysis, we used the common logarithms of serum IgG antibody titers. Cut-off points for reactivity (positive decision point) to each antigen were defined as more than 1 standard deviation (SD) from mean ELISA units (EU).

Statistical analysis

Data are expressed as means ± SD or the median (minimum, maximum) for continuous variables and frequencies and percentages for discrete variables. Statistical analysis was performed using JMP 13 statistical software (SAS Institute Inc., Cary, NC, USA). The statistical significance of intergroup differences was assessed using unpaired t-test or Mann-Whitney’s U-test (for continuous variables), or the Fisher exact test or χ2 test (for discrete variables) as appropriate. Baseline data in ischemic stroke patients were analyzed, and two-step strategies were employed to assess the relative importance of variables in their association with poor outcome, respectively, using least square linear regression analysis. First, a univariate analysis was performed. Then, a multi-factorial analysis was performed with selected factors that had p<0.10 on univariate analysis. We considered p<0.05 to be statistically significant. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves were configured to establish cut-off points for numbers of positive for periodontal pathogens that optimally predicted the unfavorable outcome.

Results

A total of 445 patients with acute ischemic stroke (194 female [44.0%], mean age 71.9±12.3 y) were registered in this study. Table 1 shows the baseline characteristics of all patients. The median NIHSS score was 3 (IQR 1–6), and the mean serum CRP was 0.57±1.60 mg/dL.

Table 1. Baseline characteristics of study subjects.

n = 445
Age 71.9±12.3
Sex (female), n (%) 194 (44.0)
Comorbidities
    Hypertension, n (%) 331 (74.4)
    Diabetes mellitus, n (%) 119 (26.7)
    Dyslipidemia, n (%) 201 (45.2)
    Atrial fibrillation, n (%) 88 (19.8)
    Chronic kidney disease, n (%) 148 (33.8)
Past history of stroke, n (%) 127 (28.5)
Current smoker, n (%) 184 (41.3)
Habitual drinker, n (%) 209 (47.0)
NIHSS score, median (IQR) 3 (1–6)
Serum CRP, mg/dL 0.57±1.60
Ischemic stroke subtypes
    Cardioembloism, n (%) 99 (22.2)
    Large artery atherosclerosis, n (%) 103 (23.1)
    Small artery occlusion, n (%) 91 (20.4)
    Others, n (%) 152 (34.2)

NIHSS, National Institutes of Health Stroke scale; IQR, interquartile range; CRP, C-reactive protein.

The proportion of patients with unfavorable outcome was 25.4% (113 patients). Table 2 shows the univariate analysis of baseline characteristics to determine associations with unfavorable outcome. Patients with unfavorable outcomes were significantly older and had a higher proportion of female sex, atrial fibrillation, and cardioembolism than those with favorable outcomes; patients with unfavorable outcomes also had a lower frequency of habitual drinking. The levels of serum CRP were significantly higher in patients with unfavorable outcomes than in those with favorable outcomes (p<0.001). The patients with unfavorable outcomes exhibited severe neurological deficits at admission.

Table 2. Univariate analysis of baseline characteristics to determine associations with unfavorable outcome.

Factors Favorable (n = 332) Unfavorable (n = 113) p-value
Age 70.0±12.2 77.2±11.1 <0.001
Sex (female), n (%) 135 (40.7) 61 (54.0) 0.012
Hypertension, n (%) 246 (74.1) 86 (76.1) 0.24
Diabetes mellitus, n (%) 89 (26.8) 30 (26.6) 0.96
Dyslipidemia, n (%) 156 (47.0) 45 (39.8) 0.18
Atrial fibrillation, n (%) 44 (13.3) 44 (38.9) <0.001
Chronic kidney disease, n (%) 109 (32.8) 39 (34.5) 0.74
Past history of stroke, n (%) 98 (29.5) 29 (25.7) 0.43
Current smoker, n (%) 145 (43.7) 39 (34.5) 0.094
Habitual drinker, n (%) 167 (50.3) 42 (37.2) 0.023
NIHSS score, median (IQR) 2 (1–4) 10 (5–20) <0.001
Serum CRP, mg/dL 0.38±1.26 1.12±2.24 <0.001
Ischemic stroke subtypes <0.001
    Cardioembloism, n (%) 48 (14.5) 51 (45.1)
    Large artery atherosclerosis, n (%) 82 (24.7) 21 (18.6)
    Small artery occlusion, n (%) 86 (25.9) 5 (4.4)
    Others, n (%) 116 (34.9) 36 (31.9)

NIHSS, National Institutes of Health Stroke scale; IQR, interquartile range; CRP, C-reactive protein.

Table 3 shows the univariate analysis of antibody titers to periodontal pathogens (positive for periodontal pathogens) to determine associations with unfavorable outcome. The patients with unfavorable outcomes had a significantly higher proportion of positive for F. nucleatum and T. denticola than those patients with favorable outcomes. Variables with p<0.10 on univariate analysis were forced to enter into the multivariate logistic regression analysis procedure. From these results, age, NIHSS scores on admission, and serum CRP were independently associated with unfavorable outcome. Furthermore, we confirmed that IgG antibody titers to F. nucleatum (odds ratio 7.64, 95% CI 3.54–16.91, p<0.001) were independent predictors of unfavorable outcome in ischemic stroke patients (S1 Table). There were no significant correlations between serum CRP and serum IgG titers to each periodontal pathogen.

Table 3. Univariate analysis of antibody titers to periodontal pathogens (positive for periodontal pathogens) to determine associations with unfavorable outcome.

Factors Favorable (n = 332) Unfavorable (n = 113) p-value
Periodontal pathogens
    Porphyromonas gingivalis, n (%) 39 (11.8) 15 (13.3) 0.67
    Aggregatibacter actinomycetemcomitans, n (%) 35 (10.5) 16 (14.2) 0.30
    Prevotella intermedia, n (%) 29 (8.7) 17 (15.0) 0.071
    Prevotella nigrescens, n (%) 33 (9.9) 11 (9.7) 0.95
    Fusobacterium nucleatum, n (%) 20 (6.0) 31 (27.4) <0.001
    Treponema denticola, n (%) 43 (13.0) 25 (22.1) 0.023
    Tannerella forsythia, n (%) 42 (12.7) 18 (15.9) 0.39
    Campylobacter rectus, n (%) 29 (8.7) 16 (14.2) 0.093
    Eikenella corrodens, n (%) 36 (10.8) 16 (14.2) 0.35
Numbers of IgG antibodies positive for periodontal pathogens, median (IQR) 0 (0–1) 1 (0–3) 0.001

IQR, interquartile range.

Patients with unfavorable outcomes had greater numbers of positive for periodontal pathogens than those with favorable outcomes (p = 0.001). The optimal cut-off point of the numbers of positive for periodontal pathogens for predicting unfavorable outcome was ≥3, with a sensitivity of 27.4%, specificity of 89.3%, and area under the ROC curve of 0.695. The mRS at 3-months was significantly higher in patients with ≥3 positive for periodontal pathogens than in those with <3 positive for periodontal pathogens (p<0.001, Fig 1). Variables with p<0.10 on univariate analysis were forced to enter into the multivariate logistic regression analysis procedure in Table 4. The numbers of IgG antibodies positive for periodontal pathogens (odds ratio 1.20, 95% CI 1.02–1.41, p = 0.03) were independent predictors of unfavorable outcome in ischemic stroke patients.

Fig 1. Relationship between the mRS at 3-months and numbers of IgG antibodies positive for periodontal pathogens.

Fig 1

The mRS at 3-months was significantly higher in patients with ≥3 positive for periodontal pathogens than in those with <3 positive for periodontal pathogens.

Table 4. Multivariate analyses to determine associations with unfavorable outcome.

Factors Odds ratio 95% CI p-value
Age 1.04 1.02–1.07 0.001
Sex (female) 1.31 0.67–2.58 0.44
Current smoker 1.21 0.62–2.37 0.58
Habitual drinking 0.43 0.22–0.81 0.008
NIHSS score on admission 1.22 1.15–1.29 <0.001
Cardioembolism 1.33 0.66–2.59 0.41
Serum CRP 1.19 1.03–1.40 0.023
Numbers of IgG antibodies positive for periodontal pathogens 1.20 1.02–1.41 0.031

CI, confidence interval; NIHSS, National Institutes of Health Stroke scale; IQR, interquartile range, CRP: C-reactive protein.

Discussion

We demonstrated that serum IgG titers to periodontal pathogens predict 3-month outcome in ischemic stroke patients. In particular, IgG antibody titers to F. nucleatum and numbers of IgG antibodies positive for periodontal pathogens were independent predictors of unfavorable outcome in ischemic stroke patients.

The associations between periodontal disease and ischemic stroke have been reported in several studies. The first National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey showed that periodontal disease is one of the risk factors of ischemic stroke [16]. The ARIC study confirmed an independent association between periodontal disease and incident ischemic stroke risk, particularly cardioembolic and thrombotic stroke subtypes [7]. Furthermore, some cohort studies have reported that dental care or periodontal disease treatment could reduce the incidence of ischemic stroke [7, 17, 18]. On the other hand, the influence of periodontal disease on outcome of ischemic stroke patients has not been established. We revealed a significant association between serum IgG titers to periodontal pathogens and outcome of ischemic stroke patients. There is a possibility that regular dental care not only reduces the incidence of ischemic stroke, but also prevents severe neurological deficits in the acute phase of ischemic stroke.

We used serum IgG titers to periodontal pathogens to investigate the association between periodontal disease and outcome of ischemic stroke. Circulating IgG levels against periodontal pathogens may be more accurate measures of periodontal infection and its severity in previous studies [19, 20]. There are several reports demonstrating the association between antibodies to periodontal pathogens and coronary heart disease [2123]. However, there have been few studies investigating the association between antibodies to periodontal pathogens and ischemic stroke. Pussinen et al. showed that antibodies to A. actinomycetemcomitans and P. gingivalis are associated with incident stroke [24]. Hosomi et al. reported that the levels of serum anti- P. intermedia antibody may be associated with atherothrombotic stroke [12]. We previously demonstrated that serum antibody titers to F. nucleatum were independent predictors of unfavorable outcome in all subtypes of stroke patients [15]. F. nucleatum, a Gram-negative anaerobe, is one of the most abundant species in the oral cavity, in both diseased and healthy individuals [25, 26]. It is considered to be a periodontal pathogen because it is frequently isolated from periodontitis lesions, produces a high number of tissue irritants, and often aggregates with other periodontal pathogens, as a bridge between early and late colonizers [27, 28]. It is frequently detected in atherosclerotic plaques, and is also one of the most common periodontal pathogens detected in ruptured cerebral aneurysm [29]. F. nucleatum elicits a variety of host responses, and is a potent stimulator of the inflammatory cytokines, IL-6, IL-8, and TNF α [30, 31].

In the present study, numbers of IgG antibodies positive for periodontal pathogens are independent predictors of unfavorable outcome in only ischemic stroke patients, not in hemorrhagic stroke patients. There is a possibility that an interaction between multiple periodontal pathogens may have negative effects on acute infarction. However, whether periodontal disease can modify acute ischemic brain damage is not fully understood. O’Boyle et al. showed that despite elevated systemic inflammation in periodontitis, oral inflammatory disease does not impact acute stroke pathology in terms of severity, determined primarily by infarct volume [32]. On the other hand, periodontal pathogens themselves are highly invasive; P. gingivalis can compromise and cross the blood brain barrier into the brain [33], and Treponema spp. have been speculated to enter the brain directly via peripheral trigeminal nerves [34]. F.nucleatum is also reported to be able to pass through the blood-brain barrier and has been found to be causative of brain abscesses in some case studies [35, 36]. Multiple periodontal pathogens infections are considered to cause higher-grade systemic inflammation. Several reports showed that high-grade systemic inflammation is deleterious in the context of ischemic stroke [3739]. We speculate that this is a part of the reasons why numbers of IgG antibodies positive for periodontal pathogens are independent predictors of unfavorable outcome in ischemic stroke patients. Further studies are needed to clarify this point.

There are some limitations to our study. First, we did not evaluate the oral conditions such as tooth loss and grade of periodontal disease, socioeconomic status, and access to dental care in each patient. We cannot eliminate the possibility that these factors can influence the outcome in ischemic stroke patients. However, several reports have shown that IgG levels against periodontal pathogens are more accurate measures of periodontal infection and its severity. Takeuchi et al. showed that higher anti-P. gingivalis IgG levels were found in the periodontitis group compared with the healthy control group [40]. Pussinen et al. found that ELISA is suitable for measuring antibodies to periodontal pathogens in large epidemiological studies in order to evaluate the role of periodontitis as a risk factor for other diseases [20]. Kudo et al. revealed that IgG titers of periodontitis patients were significantly higher than those of healthy controls, particularly in those with sites of probing depth over 4 mm [41]. In this way, IgG titers to periodontal pathogens are established as a surrogate marker of periodontal health. Moreover, we assessed the tooth status of 85 patients. The tooth status was evaluated by a dentist within 7 days after admission. The median numbers of remaining teeth were 23 (IQR 14–26), and treated teeth were 9 (IQR 4–14). Patients with unfavorable outcomes had significantly lower numbers of remaining teeth than patients with favorable outcomes. (20 [IQR 10–25] vs. 24 [IQR 16–27], p = 0.03). We found a positive correlation between the numbers of teeth lost and the numbers of positive for periodontal pathogens. Therefore, we believe that this limitation does not have a substantial influence on our results. Second, this is a cross-sectional observational study. It is difficult to elucidate the biological mechanisms responsible for the association between periodontal pathogens and ischemic stroke.

In conclusion, we demonstrated that numbers of IgG antibodies positive for periodontal pathogens were independent predictors of unfavorable outcome in ischemic stroke patients. It is possible that regular dental care not only reduces the incidence of ischemic stroke, but also prevents severe neurological deficits in the acute phase of ischemic stroke.

Supporting information

S1 Dataset

(XLSX)

S1 Table. Multivariate analyses to determine associations with unfavorable outcome.

(DOCX)

Data Availability

All relevant data are within the paper and its Supporting Information files.

Funding Statement

This study was supported by research grants from JSPS KAKENHI Grant Number (17K17350, 17K17907, and 18K10746). The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript. There was no additional external funding received for this study.

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Decision Letter 0

Kazunori Toyoda

1 Jun 2020

PONE-D-20-09034

Serum IgG titers to periodontal pathogens predict 3-month outcome in ischemic stroke patients

PLOS ONE

Dear Dr. Hosomi,

Thank you for submitting your manuscript to PLOS ONE. After careful consideration, we feel that it has merit but does not fully meet PLOS ONE’s publication criteria as it currently stands. Therefore, we invite you to submit a revised version of the manuscript that addresses the points raised during the review process.

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We look forward to receiving your revised manuscript.

Kind regards,

Kazunori Toyoda, MD, PhD

Academic Editor

PLOS ONE

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Reviewers' comments:

Reviewer's Responses to Questions

Comments to the Author

1. Is the manuscript technically sound, and do the data support the conclusions?

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Reviewer #1: Partly

Reviewer #2: No

**********

2. Has the statistical analysis been performed appropriately and rigorously?

Reviewer #1: Yes

Reviewer #2: No

**********

3. Have the authors made all data underlying the findings in their manuscript fully available?

The PLOS Data policy requires authors to make all data underlying the findings described in their manuscript fully available without restriction, with rare exception (please refer to the Data Availability Statement in the manuscript PDF file). The data should be provided as part of the manuscript or its supporting information, or deposited to a public repository. For example, in addition to summary statistics, the data points behind means, medians and variance measures should be available. If there are restrictions on publicly sharing data—e.g. participant privacy or use of data from a third party—those must be specified.

Reviewer #1: Yes

Reviewer #2: No

**********

4. Is the manuscript presented in an intelligible fashion and written in standard English?

PLOS ONE does not copyedit accepted manuscripts, so the language in submitted articles must be clear, correct, and unambiguous. Any typographical or grammatical errors should be corrected at revision, so please note any specific errors here.

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Reviewer #2: Yes

**********

5. Review Comments to the Author

Please use the space provided to explain your answers to the questions above. You may also include additional comments for the author, including concerns about dual publication, research ethics, or publication ethics. (Please upload your review as an attachment if it exceeds 20,000 characters)

Reviewer #1: Aoki et al. investigated whether serum antibody titers for a specific periodontal pathogen are associated with outcome after ischemic stroke, and which kinds of pathogens are associated with ischemic stroke using serum samples of 445 patients with acute ischemic stroke. The authors found that IgG antibody titers to Fusobacterium nucleatum and numbers of positive for periodontal pathogens were independent predictors of unfavorable outcome in ischemic stroke patients. The findings are potentially interesting but there are some interpretational flaws that should be addressed.

Major comments

1. The same group published a paper showing that serum IgG antibody titer to Fusobacterium nucleatum is associated with unfavorable outcome after ischemic and hemorrhagic stroke (n=534). The main result seems to be similar although the current manuscript analyzed data only from ischemic stroke (n=445). The authors should clarify that this manuscript does not overlap substantially with the paper by Nishi et al. in Clin Exp Immunol (reference No. 13). Otherwise, the current manuscript may be subject to duplicate publication.

2. The authors suggests that Fusobacterium nucleatum elicits host responses and expanded the damage in the ischemic penumbra during the acute phase of ischemic stroke. This is an overstatement. The inflammatory response can elicit systemic responses not restricted to the ischemic penumbra as shown in an experimental study. The authors should cite the following paper (O’Boyle et al. Int J Stroke 2020) and discuss the mechanism in details. https://doi.org/10.1177/1747493019834191

3. As discussed by the authors, the biggest limitation of this study is lack of oral assessment. There still remains a possibility that poor stroke outcome is associated with general oral (periodontal) health but not associated with specific periodontal pathogens if the elevated titers reflect periodontal health. The authors have to incorporate their own or published data that can deny the possibility.

Minor comments

In the Abstract, the name of bacteria should be fully spelled out.

Reviewer #2: In this cross-sectional study the authors predict IgG titers to periodontal pathogens predict 3-month outcome in ischemic stroke patients. In particular, IgG antibody titers to F. nucleatum

and numbers of positive for periodontal pathogens were independent predictors of

unfavorable outcome in ischemic stroke patients. The manuscript would benefit from following additional analyses:

1) PD linked with socioeconomic status and access to dental care. Inclusion of the variables in model.

2) Adjustment for multiple comparisons.

3) Some evidence to the hypothesis that PD may worsen ischemic penumbra

4) Animal data on F nucleatum, why other pathogens were not predictors of unfavorable outcome

5) Basic information on tooth status would be useful as well

**********

6. PLOS authors have the option to publish the peer review history of their article (what does this mean?). If published, this will include your full peer review and any attached files.

If you choose “no”, your identity will remain anonymous but your review may still be made public.

Do you want your identity to be public for this peer review? For information about this choice, including consent withdrawal, please see our Privacy Policy.

Reviewer #1: No

Reviewer #2: Yes: Souvik Sen MD MS MPH

[NOTE: If reviewer comments were submitted as an attachment file, they will be attached to this email and accessible via the submission site. Please log into your account, locate the manuscript record, and check for the action link "View Attachments". If this link does not appear, there are no attachment files.]

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PLoS One. 2020 Aug 6;15(8):e0237185. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0237185.r002

Author response to Decision Letter 0


23 Jun 2020

Jun 24, 2020

Dear Kazunori Toyoda, MD, PhD

We are most grateful to you and the reviewers for the critical comments and useful suggestions that have helped us to improve our paper considerably. As indicated in the responses as follow, we have taken all these comments and suggestions into account in the revised version of our paper.

Response to Reviewer #1

We wish to express our appreciation to the Reviewer for his or her insightful comments, which have helped us to improve the manuscript significantly.

1. The same group published a paper showing that serum IgG antibody titer to Fusobacterium nucleatum is associated with unfavorable outcome after ischemic and hemorrhagic stroke (n=534). The main result seems to be similar although the current manuscript analyzed data only from ischemic stroke (n=445). The authors should clarify that this manuscript does not overlap substantially with the paper by Nishi et al. in Clin Exp Immunol (reference No. 13). Otherwise, the current manuscript may be subject to duplicate publication.

Because the pathophysiology is different between ischemic stroke and hemorrhagic stroke, we believe that each characteristic becomes much clear by analyzing separately. In our study, numbers of positive for periodontal pathogens are independent predictors of unfavorable outcome in only ischemic stroke patients, not in hemorrhagic stroke patients. There is a possibility that an interaction of multiple periodontal pathogens may have negative effects on only acute infarction. On the other hand, IgG titers to A. actinomycetemcomitans, that do not impact on ischemic stroke patients at all, are an independent factor for predicting cerebral hemorrhage growth in hemorrhage stroke patients. In this way, IgG titers to periodontal pathogens indicate difference impacts between ischemic stroke patients and hemorrhagic stroke patients. Therefore, we think that the analysis which focuses on ischemic stroke patients has a major significance for an elucidation of relationship between periodontitis and stroke.

We have put this information in page 18-19, line 246-258.

2. The authors suggest that Fusobacterium nucleatum elicits host responses and expanded the damage in the ischemic penumbra during the acute phase of ischemic stroke. This is an overstatement. The inflammatory response can elicit systemic responses not restricted to the ischemic penumbra as shown in an experimental study. The authors should cite the following paper (O’Boyle et al. Int J Stroke 2020) and discuss the mechanism in details.

O’Boyle et al. showed that despite elevated systemic inflammation in periodontitis, oral inflammatory disease does not impact acute stroke pathology in terms of severity, determined primarily by infarct volume. However, the pathogen of periodontitis is only P. gingivalis in their study. In our study, IgG titers to P. gingivalis did not have an effect on outcomes in ischemic stroke patients. On the other hand, F.nucleatum is reported to be able to pass through the blood-brain barrier and has been found to be causative of brain abscesses in some case studies, while it also has abilities to adhere to and invade host vascular endothelial cells via FadA adhesion molecules, as FadA binds to vascular endothelial-cadherin on the cell surface, which triggers breakdown of endothelial cell-to-cell junctions. Following passage through the blood-brain-barrier, F.nucleatum organisms attack vascular endothelial cells in blood vessels in the brain, which can induce endothelial permeability via loosened cell junctions. We hypothesize that these mechanisms induce expanding the damage in the ischemic penumbra during the acute phase of ischemic stroke. This result suggests that the inflammatory response differs depending on the pathogen of periodontitis.

We have put this information in page 19-20, line 269-284.

3. As discussed by the authors, the biggest limitation of this study is lack of oral assessment. There still remains a possibility that poor stroke outcome is associated with general oral (periodontal) health but not associated with specific periodontal pathogens if the elevated titers reflect periodontal health. The authors have to incorporate their own or published data that can deny the possibility.

It is true that we did not evaluate the oral conditions such as tooth loss and grade of periodontal disease in most patients. We cannot eliminate the possibility that these factors can influence the outcome in ischemic stroke patients. However, several reports have shown that IgG levels against periodontal pathogens are more accurate measures of periodontal infection and its severity. Takeuchi Y et al. showed that higher anti-P. gingivalis IgG levels were found in the periodontitis group compared with the healthy control group. Pussinen PJ et al. found that ELISA is suitable for measuring antibodies to periodontal pathogens in large epidemiological studies in order to evaluate the role of periodontitis as a risk factor for other diseases. Kudo C et al. revealed that IgG titers of periodontitis patients were significantly higher than those of healthy controls, especially in those with sites of probing depth over 4 mm. In this way, IgG titers to periodontal pathogens are established as a surrogate marker of periodontal health. Moreover, we assessed the tooth status of 85 patients. The tooth status was evaluated by a dentist within 7 day after admission. The median numbers of remaining tooth were 23 (IQR 14-26), and treated tooth was 9 (IQR 4-14). Patients with unfavorable outcome were significantly lower numbers of remaining tooth than patients with favorable outcome. (20 [IQR 10-25] vs. 24 [IQR 16-27], p=0.03). We found that a positive correlation between the numbers of tooth loss and the numbers of positive for periodontal pathogens. Therefore, we believe that this limitation does not have a substantial influence on our results.

We have put this information in page 21-22, line 293-307.

4. In the Abstract, the name of bacteria should be fully spelled out.

We fully spelled out the name of periodontal pathogens in the abstract section.

Response to Reviewer #2

We wish to express our appreciation to the Reviewer for his or her insightful comments, which have helped us to improve the manuscript significantly.

1. PD linked with socioeconomic status and access to dental care. Inclusion of the variables in model.

In this study, we did not evaluate the socioeconomic status and access to dental care in each patient. We cannot eliminate the possibility that these factors can influence the outcome in ischemic stroke patients. However, several reports have shown that IgG levels against periodontal pathogens are more accurate measures of periodontal infection and its severity. Takeuchi Y et al. showed that higher anti-P. gingivalis IgG levels were found in the periodontitis group compared with the healthy control group. Pussinen PJ et al. found that ELISA is suitable for measuring antibodies to periodontal pathogens in large epidemiological studies in order to evaluate the role of periodontitis as a risk factor for other diseases. Kudo C et al. revealed that IgG titers of periodontitis patients were significantly higher than those of healthy controls, especially in those with sites of probing depth over 4 mm. In this way, IgG titers to periodontal pathogens are established as a surrogate marker of periodontal health. Moreover, we assessed the tooth status of 85 patients. The tooth status was evaluated by a dentist within 7 day after admission. The median numbers of remaining tooth were 23 (IQR 14-26), and treated tooth was 9 (IQR 4-14). Patients with unfavorable outcome were significantly lower numbers of remaining tooth than patients with favorable outcome. (20 [IQR 10-25] vs. 24 [IQR 16-27], p=0.03). We found that a positive correlation between the numbers of tooth loss and the numbers of positive for periodontal pathogens. Therefore, we believe that this limitation does not have a substantial influence on our results.

We have put this information in page 21-22, line 293-307.

2. Adjustment for multiple comparisons.

We appreciate for your suggestion. However, to our understand, we made no multiple comparison in our article. And, it is not appropriate to make multiple comparisons in this study, we believe. If you, further, suggest to make multiple comparisons and its adjustment, please let us know what kind of analysis you want us to add.

3. Some evidence to the hypothesis that PD may worsen ischemic penumbra.

O’Boyle et al. showed that despite elevated systemic inflammation in periodontitis, oral inflammatory disease does not impact acute stroke pathology in terms of severity, determined primarily by infarct volume. However, the pathogen of periodontitis is only P. gingivalis in their study. In our study, IgG titers to P. gingivalis did not have an effect on outcomes in ischemic stroke patients. On the other hand, F.nucleatum is reported to be able to pass through the blood-brain barrier and has been found to be causative of brain abscesses in some case studies, while it also has abilities to adhere to and invade host vascular endothelial cells via FadA adhesion molecules, as FadA binds to vascular endothelial-cadherin on the cell surface, which triggers breakdown of endothelial cell-to-cell junctions. Following passage through the blood-brain-barrier, F.nucleatum organisms attack vascular endothelial cells in blood vessels in the brain, which can induce endothelial permeability via loosened cell junctions. We hypothesize that these mechanisms induce expanding the damage in the ischemic penumbra during the acute phase of ischemic stroke. This result suggests that the inflammatory response differs depending on the pathogen of periodontitis.

We have put this information in page 19-20, line 269-284.

4. Animal data on F nucleatum, why other pathogens were not predictors of unfavorable outcome.

F.nucleatum is reported to be able to pass through the blood-brain barrier and has been found to be causative of brain abscesses in some case studies, while it also has abilities to adhere to and invade host vascular endothelial cells via FadA adhesion molecules, as FadA binds to vascular endothelial-cadherin on the cell surface, which triggers breakdown of endothelial cell-to-cell junctions. Following passage through the blood-brain-barrier, F.nucleatum organisms attack vascular endothelial cells in blood vessels in the brain, which can induce endothelial permeability via loosened cell junctions. We hypothesize that these mechanisms induce expanding the damage in the ischemic penumbra during the acute phase of ischemic stroke. This result suggests that the inflammatory response differs depending on the pathogen of periodontitis.

We have put this information in page 19-20, line 274-284.

5. Basic information on tooth status would be useful as well.

In this study, we assessed the tooth status of 85 patients. The tooth status was evaluated by a dentist within 7 day after admission. The median numbers of remaining tooth were 23 (IQR 14-26), and treated tooth was 9 (IQR 4-14). Patients with unfavorable outcome were significantly lower numbers of remaining tooth than patients with favorable outcome. (20 [IQR 10-25] vs. 24 [IQR 16-27], p=0.03). We found that a positive correlation between the numbers of tooth loss and the numbers of positive for periodontal pathogens.

We have put this information in page 21-22, line 301-307.

Attachment

Submitted filename: Response to Reviewers.docx

Decision Letter 1

Kazunori Toyoda

7 Jul 2020

PONE-D-20-09034R1

Serum IgG titers to periodontal pathogens predict 3-month outcome in ischemic stroke patients

PLOS ONE

Dear Dr. Hosomi,

Thank you for submitting your manuscript to PLOS ONE. After careful consideration, we feel that it has merit but does not fully meet PLOS ONE’s publication criteria as it currently stands. Therefore, we invite you to submit a revised version of the manuscript that addresses the points raised during the review process.

Please submit your revised manuscript by Aug 21 2020 11:59PM. If you will need more time than this to complete your revisions, please reply to this message or contact the journal office at plosone@plos.org. When you're ready to submit your revision, log on to https://www.editorialmanager.com/pone/ and select the 'Submissions Needing Revision' folder to locate your manuscript file.

Please include the following items when submitting your revised manuscript:

  • A rebuttal letter that responds to each point raised by the academic editor and reviewer(s). You should upload this letter as a separate file labeled 'Response to Reviewers'.

  • A marked-up copy of your manuscript that highlights changes made to the original version. You should upload this as a separate file labeled 'Revised Manuscript with Track Changes'.

  • An unmarked version of your revised paper without tracked changes. You should upload this as a separate file labeled 'Manuscript'.

If you would like to make changes to your financial disclosure, please include your updated statement in your cover letter. Guidelines for resubmitting your figure files are available below the reviewer comments at the end of this letter.

If applicable, we recommend that you deposit your laboratory protocols in protocols.io to enhance the reproducibility of your results. Protocols.io assigns your protocol its own identifier (DOI) so that it can be cited independently in the future. For instructions see: http://journals.plos.org/plosone/s/submission-guidelines#loc-laboratory-protocols

We look forward to receiving your revised manuscript.

Kind regards,

Kazunori Toyoda, MD, PhD

Academic Editor

PLOS ONE

[Note: HTML markup is below. Please do not edit.]

Reviewers' comments:

Reviewer's Responses to Questions

Comments to the Author

1. If the authors have adequately addressed your comments raised in a previous round of review and you feel that this manuscript is now acceptable for publication, you may indicate that here to bypass the “Comments to the Author” section, enter your conflict of interest statement in the “Confidential to Editor” section, and submit your "Accept" recommendation.

Reviewer #1: (No Response)

**********

2. Is the manuscript technically sound, and do the data support the conclusions?

The manuscript must describe a technically sound piece of scientific research with data that supports the conclusions. Experiments must have been conducted rigorously, with appropriate controls, replication, and sample sizes. The conclusions must be drawn appropriately based on the data presented.

Reviewer #1: Yes

**********

3. Has the statistical analysis been performed appropriately and rigorously?

Reviewer #1: Yes

**********

4. Have the authors made all data underlying the findings in their manuscript fully available?

The PLOS Data policy requires authors to make all data underlying the findings described in their manuscript fully available without restriction, with rare exception (please refer to the Data Availability Statement in the manuscript PDF file). The data should be provided as part of the manuscript or its supporting information, or deposited to a public repository. For example, in addition to summary statistics, the data points behind means, medians and variance measures should be available. If there are restrictions on publicly sharing data—e.g. participant privacy or use of data from a third party—those must be specified.

Reviewer #1: Yes

**********

5. Is the manuscript presented in an intelligible fashion and written in standard English?

PLOS ONE does not copyedit accepted manuscripts, so the language in submitted articles must be clear, correct, and unambiguous. Any typographical or grammatical errors should be corrected at revision, so please note any specific errors here.

Reviewer #1: No

**********

6. Review Comments to the Author

Please use the space provided to explain your answers to the questions above. You may also include additional comments for the author, including concerns about dual publication, research ethics, or publication ethics. (Please upload your review as an attachment if it exceeds 20,000 characters)

Reviewer #1: The authors have responded to the concerns partially.

1. The authors have added some comments on the difference between ischemic and hemorrhagic stroke in the discussion (page 18). Cite the reference 13 in the discussion, and discuss more concretely by showing the results obtained in the reference 13 and the current paper.

2. Although the authors elaborated on the mechanism by which F. nucleatum attack the blood vessels. They hypothesized the mechanism as stated in the Discussion (page 20) but it was really an overstatement as this reviewer suggested earlier. Why can the authors say the bacteria expand the damage in the penumbra. In particular, why can the authors pinpoint the site of damage in the penumbra? Without any experimental evidence, one cannot overstate the underlying mechanisms.

3. The added texts should be thoroughly checked by a native English speaker.

**********

7. PLOS authors have the option to publish the peer review history of their article (what does this mean?). If published, this will include your full peer review and any attached files.

If you choose “no”, your identity will remain anonymous but your review may still be made public.

Do you want your identity to be public for this peer review? For information about this choice, including consent withdrawal, please see our Privacy Policy.

Reviewer #1: No

[NOTE: If reviewer comments were submitted as an attachment file, they will be attached to this email and accessible via the submission site. Please log into your account, locate the manuscript record, and check for the action link "View Attachments". If this link does not appear, there are no attachment files.]

While revising your submission, please upload your figure files to the Preflight Analysis and Conversion Engine (PACE) digital diagnostic tool, https://pacev2.apexcovantage.com/. PACE helps ensure that figures meet PLOS requirements. To use PACE, you must first register as a user. Registration is free. Then, login and navigate to the UPLOAD tab, where you will find detailed instructions on how to use the tool. If you encounter any issues or have any questions when using PACE, please email PLOS at figures@plos.org. Please note that Supporting Information files do not need this step.

PLoS One. 2020 Aug 6;15(8):e0237185. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0237185.r004

Author response to Decision Letter 1


20 Jul 2020

Jul 20, 2020

Dear Kazunori Toyoda, MD, PhD

We are most grateful to you and the reviewers for the critical comments and useful suggestions that have helped us to improve our paper considerably. As indicated in the responses as follow, we have taken all these comments and suggestions into account in the revised version of our paper.

Response to Reviewer #1

We wish to express our appreciation to the Reviewer for his or her insightful comments, which have helped us to improve the manuscript significantly.

1. The authors have added some comments on the difference between ischemic and hemorrhagic stroke in the discussion (page 18). Cite the reference 13 in the discussion, and discuss more concretely by showing the results obtained in the reference 13 and the current paper.

Nishi et al. previously reported that IgG titers to a specific periodontal pathogen (F. nucleatum) were associated with unfavorable outcome after all subtypes of stroke. On the other hand, we performed the comprehensive analysis of relationship between IgG titers to whole periodontal pathogens and acute ischemic stroke. To clarify this difference, we deleted the description about relationship between IgG titers to F. nucleatum and outcome in Abstract section and result section (table 4 [model 1]). Additionally, we revised the fourth paragraph of Discussion section as follow underlined (page 18-19, line 247-264)

In the present study, numbers of IgG antibodies positive for periodontal pathogens are independent predictors of unfavorable outcome in only ischemic stroke patients, not in hemorrhagic stroke patients. There is a possibility that an interaction between multiple periodontal pathogens may have negative effects on acute infarction. However, whether periodontal disease can modify acute ischemic brain damage is not fully understood. O’Boyle et al. showed that despite elevated systemic inflammation in periodontitis, oral inflammatory disease does not impact acute stroke pathology in terms of severity, determined primarily by infarct volume [32]. On the other hand, periodontal pathogens themselves are highly invasive; P. gingivalis can compromise and cross the blood brain barrier into the brain [33], and Treponema spp. have been speculated to enter the brain directly via peripheral trigeminal nerves [34]. F.nucleatum is also reported to be able to pass through the blood-brain barrier and has been found to be causative of brain abscesses in some case studies [35, 36]. Multiple periodontal pathogens infections are considered to cause higher-grade systemic inflammation. Several reports showed that high-grade systemic inflammation is deleterious in the context of ischemic stroke [37-39]. We speculate that this is a part of the reasons why numbers of IgG antibodies positive for periodontal pathogens are independent predictors of unfavorable outcome in ischemic stroke patients. Further studies are needed to clarify this point.

2. Although the authors elaborated on the mechanism by which F. nucleatum attack the blood vessels. They hypothesized the mechanism as stated in the Discussion (page 20) but it was really an overstatement as this reviewer suggested earlier. Why can the authors say the bacteria expand the damage in the penumbra. In particular, why can the authors pinpoint the site of damage in the penumbra? Without any experimental evidence, one cannot overstate the underlying mechanisms.

As the reviewer indicated, the speculation that F. nucleatum elicits host responses and expanded the damage in the ischemic penumbra during the acute phase of ischemic stroke is an overstatement. We revised the fourth paragraph of Discussion section as follow underlined (page 18-19, line 247-264)

In the present study, numbers of IgG antibodies positive for periodontal pathogens are independent predictors of unfavorable outcome in only ischemic stroke patients, not in hemorrhagic stroke patients. There is a possibility that an interaction between multiple periodontal pathogens may have negative effects on acute infarction. However, whether periodontal disease can modify acute ischemic brain damage is not fully understood. O’Boyle et al. showed that despite elevated systemic inflammation in periodontitis, oral inflammatory disease does not impact acute stroke pathology in terms of severity, determined primarily by infarct volume [32]. On the other hand, periodontal pathogens themselves are highly invasive; P. gingivalis can compromise and cross the blood brain barrier into the brain [33], and Treponema spp. have been speculated to enter the brain directly via peripheral trigeminal nerves [34]. F.nucleatum is also reported to be able to pass through the blood-brain barrier and has been found to be causative of brain abscesses in some case studies [35, 36]. Multiple periodontal pathogens infections are considered to cause higher-grade systemic inflammation. Several reports showed that high-grade systemic inflammation is deleterious in the context of ischemic stroke [37-39]. We speculate that this is a part of the reasons why numbers of IgG antibodies positive for periodontal pathogens are independent predictors of unfavorable outcome in ischemic stroke patients. Further studies are needed to clarify this point.

3. The added texts should be thoroughly checked by a native English speaker.

As the reviewer indicated, the added texts were checked by a native English speaker.

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Decision Letter 2

Kazunori Toyoda

22 Jul 2020

Serum IgG titers to periodontal pathogens predict 3-month outcome in ischemic stroke patients

PONE-D-20-09034R2

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Acceptance letter

Kazunori Toyoda

27 Jul 2020

PONE-D-20-09034R2

Serum IgG titers to periodontal pathogens predict 3-month outcome in ischemic stroke patients

Dear Dr. Hosomi:

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on behalf of

Dr. Kazunori Toyoda

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