Isolation and characterization of Lactobacillus species inhibiting the formation of Streptococcus mutans biofilm.

Oral bacterium S11 was isolated from the saliva of young children without dental caries and with little or no visible supragingival plaque. The S11 strain showed 99.5% similarity with Lactobacillus fermentum, and was identified on the basis of biochemical characteristics and a 16S rDNA sequence. S11 strain and its culture supernatant significantly inhibited the formation of the insoluble glucan produced by Streptococcus mutans Ingbritt. S11 did not affect the multiplication of S. mutans Ingbritt, but the adherence of S. mutans Ingbritt onto cuvette walls was inhibited completely. Copyright Blackwell Munksgaard, 2004.