The Oral Mouse Microbiome Promotes Tumorigenesis in Oral Squamous Cell Carcinoma

There is growing evidence that changes in the microbiome are associated with carcinogenesis. To date, no consistent oral microbiome composition associated with OSCC has been identified. Longitudinal and functional studies like the study presented here should yield a better understanding of the role that the oral microbiome plays in OSCC. Our findings, obtained using a germ-free mouse model, indicate that the presence of different oral microbiomes enhances tumorigenesis and increases the final number of tumors in mice. By studying community-wide expression profiles, we found that regardless of the phylogenetic composition of the microbiome, the same metabolic activities were consistently associated with OSCC. Therefore, due to the functional redundancy of the microbiome, the critical element in explaining the contribution of the microbiota in OSCC is the collective physiological activity of the community, thus accounting for the previous inability to identify a consensus community profile or etiologic agents for OSCC.