{"doi":"10.17615/yyzq-ma04","title":"Exploring the genomic basis of early childhood caries: a pilot study","abstract":"Objective: A genetic component in early childhood caries (ECC) is theorized, but no genome-wide investigations of ECC have been conducted. This pilot study is part of a long-term research program aimed to: (1) determine the proportion of ECC variance attributable to the human genome and (2) identify ECC-associated genetic loci. Methods: The study's community-based sample comprised 212 children (mean age=39 months; range = 30–52 months; males = 55%; Hispanic/Latino = 35%, African-American = 32%; American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry definition of ECC prevalence = 38%). Approximately 2.4 million single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) were genotyped using DNA purified from saliva. A P < 5 × 10−8 criterion was used for genome-wide significance. SNPs with P < 5 × 10−5 were followed-up in three independent cohorts of 921 preschool-age children with similar ECC prevalence. Results: SNPs with minor allele frequency ≥5% explained 52% (standard error = 54%) of ECC variance (one-sided P = 0.03). Unsurprisingly, given the pilot's small sample size, no genome-wide significant associations were found. An intergenic locus on 4q32 (rs4690994) displayed the strongest association with ECC [P = 2.3 × 10−6; odds ratio (OR) = 3.5; 95% confidence interval (CI) = 2.1–5.9]. Thirteen loci with suggestive associations were followed-up – none showed evidence of association in the replication samples. Conclusion: This study's findings support a heritable component of ECC and demonstrate the feasibility of conducting genomics studies among preschool-age children.","journal":"UNC Libraries","year":2023,"id":388580,"datarank":0.1460560130465599,"base_score":0.6931471805599453,"endowment":0.6931471805599453,"self_citation_contribution":0.10397207708399181,"citation_network_contribution":0.042083935962568104,"self_endowment_contribution":0.10397207708399181,"citer_contribution":0.042083935962568104,"corpus_percentile":29.635646321652356,"corpus_rank":9096,"citation_count":1,"citer_count":1,"citers_with_citation_signal":1,"citers_with_endowment":1,"datacite_reuse_total":0,"is_dataset":true,"is_dataset_confidence":0.5429,"is_data_producer":false,"deposit_databanks":null,"is_oa":true,"file_count":0,"downloads":0,"has_version_chain":false,"published_date":"2023-01-01","fair_score":null,"fair_percentile":null,"algorithm_id":"datarank_citation_only_1hop_v6","ranking_scope":"data_only","authors":[{"id":525148,"name":"Kimon Divaris","orcid":"0000-0003-1290-7251","position":1,"is_corresponding":false},{"id":57637,"name":"Jenna C. 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Zeldin","orcid":null,"position":11,"is_corresponding":false},{"id":399802,"name":"Steven M. Levy","orcid":"0000-0001-9150-4199","position":12,"is_corresponding":false},{"id":378328,"name":"John R. Shaffer","orcid":"0000-0003-1897-1131","position":13,"is_corresponding":false},{"id":1025042,"name":"Andréa G. Ferreira Zandoná","orcid":null,"position":14,"is_corresponding":false},{"id":624252,"name":"Cary S. Agler","orcid":"0000-0002-5510-7214","position":15,"is_corresponding":false},{"id":1158106,"name":"Michael W. Roberts","orcid":"0000-0001-8440-7630","position":16,"is_corresponding":false},{"id":592407,"name":"R. Gary Rozier","orcid":null,"position":17,"is_corresponding":false},{"id":11361,"name":"Kari E. North","orcid":"0000-0002-8903-0366","position":18,"is_corresponding":false},{"id":284230,"name":"Mary L. Marazita","orcid":"0000-0002-2648-2832","position":0,"is_corresponding":true}],"reference_count":0,"raw_metadata":null,"created_at":"2026-07-19T01:18:18.214733Z","pmid":null,"pmcid":null,"fwci":null,"citation_percentile":null,"influential_citations":0,"oa_status":null,"license":null,"views":0,"total_file_size_bytes":0,"version_count":0,"fair_f":null,"fair_a":null,"fair_i":null,"fair_r":null,"fair_zscore":null,"fair_rationale":null,"fair_model":null,"fair_agent_version":null,"fair_fulltext_source":null,"fair_has_llm":null,"fair_computed_at":null,"clinical_trials":[],"software_tools":[],"db_accessions":[],"linked_datasets":[],"topics":[]}