API ZYM system for identification of Bacteroides spp., Capnocytophaga spp., and spirochetes of oral origin.

A total of 80 oral strains of Bacteroides gingivalis, B. asaccharolyticus, B. melaninogenicus subsp. intermedius, B. melaninogenicus subsp. melaninogenicus, Capnocytophaga, Treponema denticola, and T. vincentii were characterized with the API ZYM system for 19 enzyme activities. Comparison of anaerobic and aerobic incubation with nine reference strains of these organisms showed no important differences. The key differential tests for black-pigmented Bacteroides strains and treponemes of oral origin were trypsin, alpha-glucosidase, and N-acetyl-beta-glucosaminidase. All Capnocytophaga strains produced distinctive aminopeptidase activities but varied in their glycosidic capabilities. The presence of a trypsin-like activity in B. gingivalis, T. denticola, and a group of Capnocytophaga strains may contribute to tissue destruction in periodontal disease.