Microbiology of the American Smokeless Tobacco

Abstract

Smokeless tobacco products (STP) contain diverse microbial communities that contribute to the formation of harmful chemical byproducts. This is concerning since 300 million individuals around the globe are users of smokeless tobacco. Significant evidence has shown that microbial metabolic activities mediate the formation of carcinogens during manufacturing. In recent years, studies have revealed a series of additional health impacts that include lesions and inflammation of the oral mucosa and the gastrointestinal tract, as well as alterations of the endogenous microbiota. These findings are due to recent developments in molecular technologies that allowed researchers to better examine the microbial component of these products. This new information illustrates the scale of the STP microbiota and its diversity in the finished product that is sold for consumption. Additionally, the application of metagenomics and metatranscriptomics has provided the tools to look at phylogenies across bacterial, viral, and eukaryotic groups, their functional capacities, and viability. Here we present key examples of tobacco microbiology research that utilizes newer approaches and strategies to define the microbial component of smokeless tobacco products. We also highlight challenges in these approaches, the knowledge gaps being filled, and those gaps that warrant further study. A better understanding of the microbiology of STP brings vast public health benefits. It will provide important information for the product consumer, impact manufacturing practices, and provide support for the development of attainable and more meaningful regulatory goals. Key points Newer technologies allowed quicker and more comprehensive identification of microbes in tobacco samples, encapsulating microorganisms difficult or impossible to culture. Current research in smokeless tobacco microbiology is filling knowledge gaps previously unfilled due to the lack of suitable approaches. The microbial ecology of smokeless tobacco presents a clearer picture of diversity and variability not considered before. Supplementary Information The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s00253-021-11382-z.

Composition and Ecological Functionality of Fungal Communities Associated with Smokeless Tobacco Products Mainly Consumed in India

“… Aspergillus fumigatus was detected by a culture method in a gutkha product available in southern India ( 33 ). Furthermore, a metagenomic study on age-cured tobacco leaves showed the presence of fungal species belonging to the orders Incertae_sedis_ Eurotiomycetes , Wallemiales , Sporidiobolales , Capnodiales , and Eurotiales , an unclassified Ascomycota , and an unidentified Eurotiomycetes in ascending order of relative abundance ( 16 ). The whole-metagenome approach identified fungal species belonging to the genera Alternaria and Aspergillus in American moist and dry STPs ( 34 ).…”

Bacteriome of Moist Smokeless Tobacco Products Consumed in India With Emphasis on the Predictive Functional Potential

“…Several previous studies have identified culturable and non-culturable microorganisms in STPs (Rubinstein and Pedersen, 2002;Han et al, 2016;Onuorah Samuel, 2016;Tyx et al, 2016Tyx et al, , 2020. The genera such as Bacillus, Lactobacillus, Staphylococcus, Corynebacterium, Streptococcus, Prevotella, Rothia, Pantoea, Veillonella, Propionibacterium, Fusobacterium, Actinomyces, Lactobacillus, Sphingomonas, Marinilactibacillus, Oceanobacillus, and Porphyromonas were recognized in different STPs (Rivera and Tyx, 2021;Sajid et al, 2021).…”

Development of Candida autochthonous starter for cigar fermentation via dissecting the microbiome

“…In this study, the contents of total sugar (TS), reducing sugar (RS), total nitrogen (TN), alkaloids (NIC) and total flavor components (FC) during cigar fermentation were analyzed (Figure 1). The contents of total sugar and reducing sugar are important indicators of the quality of tobacco leaves, they can form various flavor substances through a series of chemical reactions (Arihara et al, 2017;Rivera and Tyx, 2021). As shown in Figure 1A, with the development of fermentation, the starch in tobacco leaves was gradually degraded into small molecules of sugars by microorganisms, resulting in a gradual increase in the content of total sugar and reducing sugar.…”