Health-Associated Niche Inhabitants as Oral Probiotics: The Case of Streptococcus dentisani.

Arantxa López-López,María D Ferrer,Alex Mira,Anny Camelo-Castillo,Áurea Simon-Soro

doi:10.3389/fmicb.2017.00379

Abstract

Oral diseases, including dental caries and periodontitis, are among the most prevalent diseases worldwide and develop as a consequence of a microbial dysbiosis. Several bacterial strains are being tested as potential oral health-promoting organisms, but usually they are species isolated from niches other than the site where they must exert its probiotic action, typically from fecal samples. We hypothesize that oral inhabitants associated to health conditions will be more effective than traditional, gut-associated probiotic species in key aspects such as colonization of the oral site where disease takes place or the possession of oral health promoting functions, as well as more practical issues like safety and toxicity, and establishing proper doses for administration. As an example of these active colonizers, we describe the case of Streptococcus dentisani, a new streptococcal species isolated from dental plaque of caries-free individuals. We have detected it in 98% of dental plaque samples from healthy individuals and, as expected, it does not produce any toxic secondary metabolite and does not survive a simulated stomach digestion, preventing potential secondary effects. Besides, this species has a double probiotic action, as it inhibits the growth of major oral pathogens through the production of bacteriocins, and also buffers acidic pH (the primary cause of dental caries) through an arginolytic pathway. We propose the use of S. dentisani as a promising probiotic against tooth decay.

Highlights

IntroductionOral diseases such as dental caries (tooth decay) and periodontitis (gum disease) are caused by microorganisms
Oral diseases such as dental caries and periodontitis are caused by microorganisms
Due to the greater development of probiotics in gut pathologies, and the strong safety evidence accumulated for gut bacteria, many microorganisms isolated from human or animal fecal samples with beneficial properties are being developed as potential probiotics to promote oral health

Summary

Introduction

Oral diseases such as dental caries (tooth decay) and periodontitis (gum disease) are caused by microorganisms. It has been pointed out that antimicrobial strategies may not be effective against oral diseases, and new preventive or therapeutic approaches based on restoring the microbial ecological balance in the oral cavity have been proposed (Marsh, 2015; Marsh et al, 2015) Those new preventive measures could include the use of prebiotic compounds to promote the growth of health-associated bacteria (Santarpia et al, 2014), or the application of probiotic bacteria with beneficial features (Saha et al, 2012). Due to the greater development of probiotics in gut pathologies, and the strong safety evidence accumulated for gut bacteria, many microorganisms isolated from human or animal fecal samples with beneficial properties are being developed as potential probiotics to promote oral health These often include strains of lactobacilli and bifidobacteria, which had previously been shown to have inmunomodulatory, anti-inflammatory and anti-bacterial properties in different in vitro studies and in clinical trials (see Table 1; Reid et al, 2011; Cagetti et al, 2013). The identification of novel strains isolated from the oral cavity itself could be instrumental for the development of efficient probiotics applied to oral health

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