Rapid procedure for acid adaptation of oral lactic-acid bacteria and further characterization of the response.

Acid-adaptive responses could be induced readily in oral lactic-acid bacteria by growing them in batch cultures with excess sugar or more conveniently and rapidly by transferring cells to acidified growth media for the time required for biomass doubling. The response of Streptococcus mutans GS-5 was induced in a progressive rather than all-or-nothing way, and the extent of acid tolerance was inversely related to the pH of the inducing medium over a range from 8.5 to 5. The weak acids fluoride, acetate, or lactate did not measurably enhance acid adaptation, and so the response did not appear to depend primarily on changes in delta pH or the proton motive force across the cell membrane. Transcription and translation to form new proteins did appear to be necessary, as indicated by inhibition of adaptation by rifampin or chloramphenicol and by lack of adaptation by cells suspended in phosphate buffer at pH 5. Streptococcus salivarius and Lactobacillus casei were acid adapted by the rapid method, and the method appeared to be generally useful for oral lactic-acid bacteria. The rapid induction of the response in multiple oral lactic-acid bacteria suggests that it is of general importance for maintaining a diversity of organisms in the oral microbiota, which is regularly subjected to acid stresses.