Vegetos
(An International Journal of Plant Research & Biotechnology)
(eISSN: 2229-4473)
Assessment of inhabitant bacteria and their associated health risk attributes of commercial betel nuts
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Research Articles | Published: 01 July, 2026
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Keywords: Betel nut, Bacterial diversity, Biofilm formation, Antibiotic resistance, Salt tolerance
Abstract
Betel nut is one of the most popular chewing products in South and Southeast Asia. A handful of reports suggest that regular consumption of betel nut alters the bacterial diversity of the oral cavity and leads to dysbiosis. This may be due to its chemical constituents and the resident bacterial species. The chemical makeup of betel nut has been well studied; however, no reports are available on the bacterial diversity of the nut itself. Therefore, in this study, we examined the bacterial diversity of Indian betel nut samples using a culture-dependent approach. During the investigation, it was observed that commercial betel nut harbors a high bacterial load, ranging from 24 ± 3 × 101 to 255 ± 18 × 103 per gram of betel nut sample. Based on morphological characteristics, these bacteria were categorized into sixteen different types. Moreover, fifteen of these bacteria exhibit strong biofilm formation activity, nine isolates could resist 2M NaCl, and thirteen were resistant to one or more antibiotics. Molecular characterization of ten biochemically distinct bacteria unveiled that Bacillus-type Firmicutes were most prevalent in the betel nut samples, followed by Staphylococcus and Enterobacter species. These bacteria also showed co-occurrence with antibiotic resistance and biofilm formation activity. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report on bacterial diversity in betel nut samples from India. Further research is needed to understand the role of these bacteria in the oral microbiome.
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Author Information
Department of Environmental Microbiology, School of Earth and Environmental Sciences, Babasaheb Bhimrao Ambedkar University, Lucknow, India