Shining a Light on Microbial ‘Dark Matter’ of the Oral Microbiome

The oral microbiome is becoming increasingly central to the understanding of oral health and disease. During the past decade, oral microbiology has progressed from the study of individual pathogens to that of the entire polymicrobial community. This shift has led to the identification of over 700 species of bacteria in the oral cavity. Beyond identifying species, this change in focus has led scientists to understand that it is not the presence of any one bacterium that causes oral disease. Instead, the entire community of bacteria and their interactions with one another and the host contribute to oral disease onset and progression.1
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The term “dark matter” is typically associated with cosmology – the study of the universe and its origins.1,2 In cosmology, “dark matter” refers to matter that can only be hypothesized to exist by observing gravitational effects. The term is now being adopted and used in microbiology to describe microorganisms that scientists know exist, yet cannot study due to their current inability to be cultured.1...

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