Bitter taste genetics and oral health in Canadian Longitudinal Study on Aging

Abstract

This study aimed to investigate the association of single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in 25 Bitter Taste Receptor genes (TAS2Rs) and 12 TAS2R pseudogenes with self-reported oral health outcomes in the Canadian Longitudinal Study on Aging (CLSA) cohort. Following quality control, 124 SNPs with a minor allele frequency > 0.01 and 21,991 individuals of European ancestry were included in the analysis. Fifteen SNPs in TAS2R8, 9, 13, 14, 20, and 50 were significantly associated with self-reported sore jaw muscles, a symptom commonly linked to temporomandibular disorders (TMDs). TAS2R20 exhibited the highest number of associated SNPs. Structure-function analysis suggests that variants in TAS2R20 may contribute to this symptom by altering ligand interactions. These findings highlight the potential for TAS2R genetic screening to identify individuals at elevated risk for TMD, supporting the development of personalized treatment strategies and advancing our understanding of TMD genetic risk factors.