#149: What Your Mouth Reveals About MS. Prof. Dr. Ashutosh Mangalam on the Oral Microbiome and Future Therapies

What can your mouth tell us about multiple sclerosis?

In this episode of the MS-Perspektive Podcast, Professor Dr. Ashutosh Mangalam, immunologist and microbiome researcher at the University of Iowa, shares fascinating insights into the oral microbiome and multiple sclerosis. While most MS research focuses on the gut, this conversation highlights why oral bacteria and their metabolites may also play an important role in inflammation, immune regulation, and disease activity.

We talk about what the microbiome is, how the oral microbiome differs in people with MS, and why beneficial bacteria are reduced while potentially harmful ones increase. Professor Mangalam explains the relevance of microbial metabolites such as hypotaurine, discusses whether saliva could become a future biomarker for MS monitoring, and why oral health and regular dental care matter for people living with MS.

The episode also explores how combining oral, gut, and blood-based markers could support more personalized MS care in the future.

you can read the interview here: https://ms-perspektive.de/EN/149-ashu-mangalam

📌 Topics covered in this episode

• What the microbiome is and why it matters in MS

• The role of the oral microbiome in relapsing-remitting MS

• Dysbiosis: loss of beneficial bacteria and rise of pathogenic species

• Microbial metabolites and inflammation

• Saliva as a potential biomarker for MS monitoring

• Oral health, dental care, and lifestyle factors

• Personalized MS treatment using microbiome-based markers

• Future directions in MS and microbiome research

Final message to people living with MS

Prof. Dr. Ashutosh Mangalam: MS should not define you. A healthy lifestyle, social support, and staying positive truly matter. I have great respect for what people with MS go through every day.

From a researcher's perspective, it is incredibly important for us to listen to patients, understand their real challenges, and work on questions that can truly improve quality of life. That is what motivates my work.

Nele von Horsten: Thank you so much, Ashu, for this insightful and hopeful conversation.

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See you soon and try to make the best out of your life,
Nele

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