Abstract
Polymicrobial interactions in dental plaque play a significant role in dysbiosis and homeostasis in the oral cavity. In early childhood caries, Streptococcus mutans and Candida albicans are often co-isolated from carious lesions and associated with increased disease severity. Studies have demonstrated that metabolic and glucan-dependent synergism between C. albicans and S. mutans contribute to enhanced pathogenesis. However, it is unclear how oral commensals influence pathogen synergy. Streptococcus parasanguinis, a hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) producing oral commensal, has antimicrobial activity against S. mutans. In this study, we utilized a three species biofilm model to understand the impact of S. parasanguinis on S. mutans and C. albicans synergy. We report that S. parasanguinis disrupts S. mutans and C. albicans biofilm synergy in a contact and H2O2-independent manner. Further, metabolomics analysis revealed a S. parasanguinis-driven alteration in sugar metabolism that restricts biofilm development by S. mutans. Moreover, S. parasanguinis inhibits S. mutans glucosyltransferase (GtfB) activity, which is important for glucan matrix development and GtfB-mediated binding to C. albicans mannan. Taken together, our study describes a new antimicrobial role for S. parasanguinis and highlights how this abundant oral commensal may be utilized to attenuate pathogen synergism.
Highlights
Polymicrobial interactions in dental plaque play a significant role in dysbiosis and homeostasis in the oral cavity
In an effort to elucidate the interaction between S. parasanguinis and the Early childhood caries (ECC) pathogens, S. mutans and C. albicans, we developed a three species biofilm model
In agreement with previous studies, crystal violet biomass quantification showed that S. parasanguinis and C. albicans produced relatively modest single species biofilms compared to the single species S. mutans biofilm (Fig. 1A)
Summary
Polymicrobial interactions in dental plaque play a significant role in dysbiosis and homeostasis in the oral cavity. Studies have demonstrated that metabolic and glucan-dependent synergism between C. albicans and S. mutans contribute to enhanced pathogenesis. It is unclear how oral commensals influence pathogen synergy. We utilized a three species biofilm model to understand the impact of S. parasanguinis on S. mutans and C. albicans synergy. Synergism between S. mutans and C. albicans has been well-documen ted[11,16,17,19,20,21], the role of oral commensal streptococci in ECC microbial synergy is poorly understood. Our study reveals a new mechanism by which S. parasanguinis safeguards against ECC pathogens, by blocking S. mutans sucrose utilization, and indicates that this commensal could potentially be used as a preventative measure for oral microbial diseases
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