Part II: From Symbiosis to Dysbiosis: The Tipping Point

February 19, 2026

·S. Thaddeus Connelly, DDS, MD, PhD, FACS

Within the Epoch #4 framework of complexity biology, the transition from symbiosis to dysbiosis is not a gradual accumulation of pathogenic bacteria. It is a nonlinear ecological phase transition a bifurcation event in which the oral ecosystem shifts from a stable Health Attractor to a self-reinforcing Disease Attractor. This tipping point is not driven by bacterial quantity alone, but by coordinated shifts in Terrain (T), Information flow (I), and Energy dynamics (E).

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The complete article — figures, references, and clinical commentary — is published in The Oral Health Bulletin on LinkedIn.

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