Investigation of probiotic bacteria as dental caries and periodontal disease biotherapeutics.

Oral diseases, specifically dental caries and periodontal disease, are characterised by increases in pathogenic microorganisms, increased demineralisation and increased inflammation and levels of inflammatory markers. Despite the therapeutic strategies, oral diseases have elevated prevalence rates. Recent work has demonstrated that probiotic bio-therapeutics can decrease oral pathogen counts, including caries-causing Streptococcus mutans and oral inflammation. The aim of this work was to investigate putative probiotic bacteria, selected for S. mutans inhibition and for their oral health-promoting characteristics. The probiotic bacteria were screened for S. mutans inhibition, probiotic bacteriocin activity, salivary pH modulation, probiotic nutrient (sucrose) competition, probiotic co-aggregation with S. mutans, bacterial attachment to oral epithelial keratinocytes, bacterial nitric oxide production and bacterial antioxidant activity. The results indicate that Lactobacillus reuteri strains NCIMB 701359, NC...