Combating Biofilm by Targeting Its Formation and Dispersal Using Gallic Acid against Single and Multispecies Bacteria Causing Dental Plaque.

Aqel Albutti,Muhammad Salman,Ziaur Rahman,Muhammad Faisal Siddiqui,Sadia Qayyum,Muhammad Ajmal Shah,Fazal Adnan,Farhana Maqbool,Muhammad Shoaib Gul,Ihsan Ullah

doi:10.3390/pathogens10111486

Abstract

Exploring biological agents to control biofilm is a vital alternative in combating pathogenic bacteria that cause dental plaque. This study was focused on antimicrobial, biofilm formation and biofilm dispersal efficacy of Gallic acid (GA) against bacteria, including Proteus spp., Escherichia coli, Pseudomonas spp., Salmonella spp., Streptococcus mutans, and Staphylococcus aureus and multispecies bacteria. Biofilm was qualitatively and quantitatively assessed by crystal violet assay, florescence microscopy (bacterial biomass (µm2), surface coverage (%)) and extracellular polymeric substances (EPS). It was exhibited that GA (1–200 mg/L) can reduce bacterial growth. However, higher concentrations (100–200 mg/L) markedly reduced (86%) bacterial growth and biofilm formation (85.5%), while GA did not exhibit any substantial dispersal effects on pre-formed biofilm. Further, GA (20–200 mg/L) exhibited 93.43% biomass reduction and 88.6% (p < 0.05) EPS (polysaccharide) reduction. Microscopic images were processed with BioImageL software. It was revealed that biomass surface coverage was reduced to 2% at 200 mg/L of GA and that 13,612 (µm2) biomass was present for control, while it was reduced to 894 (µm2) at 200 mg/L of GA. Thus, this data suggest that GA have antimicrobial and biofilm control potential against single and multispecies bacteria causing dental plaque.

Highlights

The current study was mainly focused on control of plaque formation using gallic acid (GA) against six different biofilms forming and cariogenic bacterial strains isolated from dental plaque
The results of the present study revealed that the organisms isolated from dental plaque either in single or multispecies bacteria are capable of developing biofilm
From the current research study, it was concluded that all the bacterial species i.e., Proteus spp., Escherichia coli, Staphylococcus aureus, Pseudomonas spp., Salmonella spp., and Streptococcus mutans have the capability to form biofilm

Summary

Introduction

Dental plaque and caries are major oral diseases around the globe and are known to be caused by different microbes and food particles [1]. Biofilm is the colonization of bacteria entrapped in the exopolymeric matrix formed by the microbial cells. This matrix of biofilm is usually known as glycocalyx, which is typically composed of lipids, lipopolysaccharides [5,6], proteinaceous substances, glycopeptides [7], complex polysaccharide matrix and some other substances that hold different microorganisms together [8]

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