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Applied and Environmental Microbiology, March 2003, p. 1702-1709, Vol. 69, No. 3
0099-2240/03/$08.00+0     DOI: 10.1128/AEM.69.3.1702-1709.2003
Copyright © 2003, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.

Mass Transport of Macromolecules within an In Vitro Model of Supragingival Plaque

Thomas Thurnheer,* Rudolf Gmür, Stuart Shapiro,{dagger} and Bernhard Guggenheim

Institute for Oral Microbiology and General Immunology, University of Zürich, CH-8028 Zürich, Switzerland

Received 26 June 2002/ Accepted 3 December 2002

The aim of this study was to examine the diffusion of macromolecules through an in vitro biofilm model of supragingival plaque. Polyspecies biofilms containing Actinomyces naeslundii, Fusobacterium nucleatum, Streptococcus oralis, Streptococcus sobrinus, Veillonella dispar, and Candida albicans were formed on sintered hydroxyapatite disks and then incubated at room temperature for defined periods with fluorescent markers with molecular weights ranging from 3,000 to 900,000. Subsequent examination by confocal laser scanning microscopy revealed that the mean square penetration depths for all tested macromolecules except immunoglobulin M increased linearly with time, diffusion coefficients being linearly proportional to the cube roots of the molecular weights of the probes (range, 10,000 to 240,000). Compared to diffusion in bulk water, diffusion in the biofilms was markedly slower. The rate of diffusion for each probe appeared to be constant and not a function of biofilm depth. Analysis of diffusion phenomena through the biofilms suggested tortuosity as the most probable explanation for retarded diffusion. Selective binding of probes to receptors present in the biofilms could not explain the observed extent of retardation of diffusion. These results are relevant to oral health, as selective attenuated diffusion of fermentable carbohydrates and acids produced within dental plaque is thought to be essential for the development of carious lesions.

* Corresponding author. Mailing address: Institute for Oral Microbiology and General Immunology, University of Zürich, Plattenstr. 11, CH-8028 Zürich, Switzerland. Phone: 41 1 634 3256. Fax: 41 1 634 4310. E-mail: thurnher{at}zzmk.unizh.ch.

{dagger} Present address: Basilea Pharmaceutica AG, CH-4002 Basel, Switzerland.

Applied and Environmental Microbiology, March 2003, p. 1702-1709, Vol. 69, No. 3
0099-2240/03/$08.00+0     DOI: 10.1128/AEM.69.3.1702-1709.2003
Copyright © 2003, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.



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