This Article
Right arrow Full Text
Right arrow Full Text (PDF)
Right arrow Alert me when this article is cited
Right arrow Alert me if a correction is posted
Services
Right arrow Similar articles in this journal
Right arrow Similar articles in PubMed
Right arrow Alert me to new issues of the journal
Right arrow Download to citation manager
Right arrowReprints and Permissions
Right arrow Copyright Information
Right arrow Books from ASM Press
Right arrow MicrobeWorld
Citing Articles
Right arrow Citing Articles via HighWire
Right arrow Citing Articles via Google Scholar
Google Scholar
Right arrow Articles by Diaz, P. I.
Right arrow Articles by Kolenbrander, P. E.
Right arrow Search for Related Content
PubMed
Right arrow PubMed Citation
Right arrow Articles by Diaz, P. I.
Right arrow Articles by Kolenbrander, P. E.
Agricola
Right arrow Articles by Diaz, P. I.
Right arrow Articles by Kolenbrander, P. E.

 Previous Article  |  Next Article 

Applied and Environmental Microbiology, April 2006, p. 2837-2848, Vol. 72, No. 4
0099-2240/06/$08.00+0     doi:10.1128/AEM.72.4.2837-2848.2006
Copyright © 2006, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.

Molecular Characterization of Subject-Specific Oral Microflora during Initial Colonization of Enamel

Patricia I. Diaz,1,{dagger} Natalia I. Chalmers,1,2 Alexander H. Rickard,1 Colin Kong,1,{ddagger} Craig L. Milburn,1,§ Robert J. Palmer Jr.,1 and Paul E. Kolenbrander1*

Oral Infection and Immunity Branch, National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, Maryland,1 Department of Biomedical Sciences, University of Maryland School of Dentistry, Baltimore, Maryland2

Received 8 August 2005/ Accepted 7 January 2006

The initial microbial colonization of tooth surfaces is a repeatable and selective process, with certain bacterial species predominating in the nascent biofilm. Characterization of the initial microflora is the first step in understanding interactions among community members that shape ensuing biofilm development. Using molecular methods and a retrievable enamel chip model, we characterized the microbial diversity of early dental biofilms in three subjects. A total of 531 16S rRNA gene sequences were analyzed, and 97 distinct phylotypes were identified. Microbial community composition was shown to be statistically different among subjects. In all subjects, however, 4-h and 8-h communities were dominated by Streptococcus spp. belonging to the Streptococcus oralis/Streptococcus mitis group. Other frequently observed genera (comprising at least 5% of clone sequences in at least one of the six clone libraries) were Actinomyces, Gemella, Granulicatella, Neisseria, Prevotella, Rothia, and Veillonella. Fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) confirmed that the proportion of Streptococcus sp. sequences in the clone libraries coincided with the proportion of streptococcus probe-positive organisms on the chip. FISH also revealed that, in the undisturbed plaque, not only Streptococcus spp. but also the rarer Prevotella spp. were usually seen in small multigeneric clusters of cells. This study shows that the initial dental plaque community of each subject is unique in terms of diversity and composition. Repetitive and distinctive community composition within subjects suggests that the spatiotemporal interactions and ecological shifts that accompany biofilm maturation also occur in a subject-dependent manner.


* Corresponding author. Mailing address: National Institutes of Health/NIDCR, Building 30, Room 310, 30 Convent Dr., Bethesda, MD 20892-4350. Phone: (301) 496-1497. Fax: (301) 402-0396. E-mail: pkolenbrander{at}dir.nidcr.nih.gov.

{dagger} Present address: Department of Periodontology, School of Dentistry, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, N.C.

{ddagger} Present address: University of Connecticut School of Dental Medicine, Farmington, Conn.

§ Present address: College of Dental Medicine, Medical University of South Carolina, Charleston, S.C.


Applied and Environmental Microbiology, April 2006, p. 2837-2848, Vol. 72, No. 4
0099-2240/06/$08.00+0     doi:10.1128/AEM.72.4.2837-2848.2006
Copyright © 2006, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.




This article has been cited by other articles:

  • Gutner, M., Chaushu, S., Balter, D., Bachrach, G. (2009). Saliva Enables the Antimicrobial Activity of LL-37 in the Presence of Proteases of Porphyromonas gingivalis. Infect. Immun. 77: 5558-5563 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Periasamy, S., Kolenbrander, P. E. (2009). Mutualistic Biofilm Communities Develop with Porphyromonas gingivalis and Initial, Early, and Late Colonizers of Enamel. J. Bacteriol. 191: 6804-6811 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Al-Ahmad, A., Follo, M., Selzer, A.-C., Hellwig, E., Hannig, M., Hannig, C. (2009). Bacterial colonization of enamel in situ investigated using fluorescence in situ hybridization. J Med Microbiol 58: 1359-1366 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Periasamy, S., Kolenbrander, P. E. (2009). Aggregatibacter actinomycetemcomitans Builds Mutualistic Biofilm Communities with Fusobacterium nucleatum and Veillonella Species in Saliva. Infect. Immun. 77: 3542-3551 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Dige, I., Raarup, M. K., Nyengaard, J. R., Kilian, M., Nyvad, B. (2009). Actinomyces naeslundii in initial dental biofilm formation. Microbiology 155: 2116-2126 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Periasamy, S., Chalmers, N. I., Du-Thumm, L., Kolenbrander, P. E. (2009). Fusobacterium nucleatum ATCC 10953 Requires Actinomyces naeslundii ATCC 43146 for Growth on Saliva in a Three-Species Community That Includes Streptococcus oralis 34. Appl. Environ. Microbiol. 75: 3250-3257 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Nasidze, I., Li, J., Quinque, D., Tang, K., Stoneking, M. (2009). Global diversity in the human salivary microbiome. Genome Res 19: 636-643 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Chalmers, N. I., Palmer, R. J. Jr., Cisar, J. O., Kolenbrander, P. E. (2008). Characterization of a Streptococcus sp.-Veillonella sp. Community Micromanipulated from Dental Plaque. J. Bacteriol. 190: 8145-8154 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Davey, M. E. (2008). Tracking Dynamic Interactions during Plaque Formation. J. Bacteriol. 190: 7869-7870 [Full Text]  
  • van der Mei, H. C., Rustema-Abbing, M., de Vries, J., Busscher, H. J. (2008). Bond Strengthening in Oral Bacterial Adhesion to Salivary Conditioning Films. Appl. Environ. Microbiol. 74: 5511-5515 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Jakubovics, N. S., Gill, S. R., Iobst, S. E., Vickerman, M. M., Kolenbrander, P. E. (2008). Regulation of Gene Expression in a Mixed-Genus Community: Stabilized Arginine Biosynthesis in Streptococcus gordonii by Coaggregation with Actinomyces naeslundii. J. Bacteriol. 190: 3646-3657 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Bek-Thomsen, M., Tettelin, H., Hance, I., Nelson, K. E., Kilian, M. (2008). Population Diversity and Dynamics of Streptococcus mitis, Streptococcus oralis, and Streptococcus infantis in the Upper Respiratory Tracts of Adults, Determined by a Nonculture Strategy. Infect. Immun. 76: 1889-1896 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Tunney, M. M., Field, T. R., Moriarty, T. F., Patrick, S., Doering, G., Muhlebach, M. S., Wolfgang, M. C., Boucher, R., Gilpin, D. F., McDowell, A., Elborn, J. S. (2008). Detection of Anaerobic Bacteria in High Numbers in Sputum from Patients with Cystic Fibrosis. Am. J. Respir. Crit. Care Med. 177: 995-1001 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Arif, N., Sheehy, E.C., Do, T., Beighton, D. (2008). Diversity of Veillonella spp. from Sound and Carious Sites in Children. JDR 87: 278-282 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Sztajer, H., Lemme, A., Vilchez, R., Schulz, S., Geffers, R., Yip, C. Y. Y., Levesque, C. M., Cvitkovitch, D. G., Wagner-Dobler, I. (2008). Autoinducer-2-Regulated Genes in Streptococcus mutans UA159 and Global Metabolic Effect of the luxS Mutation. J. Bacteriol. 190: 401-415 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Brown, S. A., Whiteley, M. (2007). A Novel Exclusion Mechanism for Carbon Resource Partitioning in Aggregatibacter actinomycetemcomitans. J. Bacteriol. 189: 6407-6414 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Chalmers, N. I., Palmer, R. J. Jr., Du-Thumm, L., Sullivan, R., Shi, W., Kolenbrander, P. E. (2007). Use of Quantum Dot Luminescent Probes To Achieve Single-Cell Resolution of Human Oral Bacteria in Biofilms. Appl. Environ. Microbiol. 73: 630-636 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Palmer, R. J. Jr., Diaz, P. I., Kolenbrander, P. E. (2006). Rapid Succession within the Veillonella Population of a Developing Human Oral Biofilm In Situ. J. Bacteriol. 188: 4117-4124 [Abstract] [Full Text]