Calculus study
Research type
Research Study
Full title
Investigating the oral microbiome over 600 years
IRAS ID
331330
Contact name
Richard Holliday
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
Newcastle University
Duration of Study in the UK
2 years, 10 months, 31 days
Research summary
This project has been funded as part of a Leverhulme trust awarded to Dr Sarah Inskip (University of Leicester) and will be conducted as a collaborative research project between Newcastle University and the University of Leicester.
The overall aim of the project is to produce nearly 600 years of data on the human oral microbiome where changes can be linked to major shifts in human consumption patterns and will create the first deep-time evolutionary study of the impact of tobacco on health.
The team in Newcastle will obtain modern oral samples of a range of individuals with different tobacco and nicotine exposures. This data will be directly connected to that from the Tobacco, Health and History project (University of Leicester) which includes pre-tobacco individuals, pipe users, those with tobacco staining, and those with no other evidence for tobacco use. This will produce nearly 600 years of data on the human oral microbiome. Additionally, we will be evaluating the cementum deposit on extracted modern teeth.
Participants will be invited to take part who have a range of smoking and nicotine experiences (including none). Participants will attend the dental clinical research facility for a single 60-minute visit. A dental examination will be completed and a range of samples will be collected to understand the bacterial composition. After this a scale and polish will be provided.
REC name
South Central - Berkshire Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
23/SC/0325
Date of REC Opinion
14 Sep 2023
REC opinion
Favourable Opinion