Oral Arginine Metabolism May Decrease the Risk for Dental Caries in Children

Nascimento, Marcelle M.; Liu, Y.; Kalra, Rosy; Perry, Shelbi D; Adewumi, A.; Xu, Xin; Primosch, Robert E.; Burne, Robert A.

doi:10.1177/0022034513487907

Cited by 72 publications

(83 citation statements)

References 27 publications

(33 reference statements)

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“…Carious lesions were detected and diagnosed by a calibrated examiner (M.M.N.) using International Caries Detection and Assessment System II (ICDAS-II) visual criteria (53) and the lesion activity assessment (LAA) scoring system (54), which determines the activity of carious lesions based on clinical appearance, the presence of plaque accumulation, and tactile sensation (55). Teeth were examined before and after the removal of dental plaque as well as before and after being dried with compressed air for 5 s. The ICDAS scores for individual tooth surfaces are defined as follows: 0 for no or a slight change in enamel after air drying, 1 for the first visual change in enamel after air drying, 2 for distinct visual changes in enamel before air drying, 3 for localized enamel breakdown without visual signs of dentin involvement, 4 for an underlying dark shadow from dentin, 5 for a distinct cavity with visible dentin, and 6 for an extensive and distinct cavity with visible dentin affecting more than half of the surface.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Microbiomes of Site-Specific Dental Plaques from Children with Different Caries Status

et al. 2017

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The oral microbiota associated with the initiation and progression of dental caries has yet to be fully characterized. The Human Oral Microbe Identification Using Next-Generation Sequencing (HOMINGS) approach was used to analyze the microbiomes of site-specific supragingival dental plaques from children with different caries status. Fifty-five children (2 to 7 years of age) were assessed at baseline and at 12 months and grouped as caries free (CF), caries active with enamel lesions (CAE), and caries active with dentin carious lesions (CA). Plaque samples from cariesfree tooth surfaces (PF) and from enamel carious lesions (PE) and dentin carious lesions (PD) were collected. 16S community profiles were obtained by HOMINGS, and 408 bacterial species and 84 genus probes were assigned. Plaque bacterial communities showed temporal stability, as there was no significant difference in beta diversity values between the baseline and 12-month samples. Irrespective of collection time points, the microbiomes of healthy tooth surfaces differed substantially from those found during caries activity. All pairwise comparisons of beta diversity values between groups were significantly different (P Ͻ 0.05), except for comparisons between the CA-PF, CAE-PE, and CA-PE groups. Streptococcus genus probe 4 and Neisseria genus probe 2 were the most frequently detected taxa across the plaque groups, followed by Streptococcus sanguinis, which was highly abundant in CF-PF. Well-known acidogenic/aciduric species such as Streptococcus mutans, Scardovia wiggsiae, Parascardovia denticolens, and Lactobacillus salivarius were found almost exclusively in CA-PD. The microbiomes of supragingival dental plaque differ substantially among tooth surfaces and children of different caries activities. In support of the ecological nature of caries etiology, a steady transition in community species composition was observed with disease progression.

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Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Microbiomes of Site-Specific Dental Plaques from Children with Different Caries Status

et al. 2017

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“…Due to the pH raising effect of ammonia, arginine has been regarded as a potential endogenous caries modulator (18)(19)(20)(21). Indeed, the levels of free arginine in the saliva of cariesfree individuals were significantly higher than those in the saliva of those with caries (22), and a positive correlation between ADS activity in plaque biofilms and absence of caries has been clinically validated in adults (23) and children (24). These findings suggest the possibility of arginine supplementation as a strategy to disrupt pathogenic biofilms.…”

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confidence: 92%

l -Arginine Modifies the Exopolysaccharide Matrix and Thwarts Streptococcus mutans Outgrowth within Mixed-Species Oral Biofilms

et al. 2016

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L-Arginine, a ubiquitous amino acid in human saliva, serves as a substrate for alkali production by arginolytic bacteria. Recently, exogenous L-arginine has been shown to enhance the alkalinogenic potential of oral biofilm and destabilize its microbial community, which might help control dental caries. However, L-arginine exposure may inflict additional changes in the biofilm milieu when bacteria are growing under cariogenic conditions. Here, we investigated how exogenous L-arginine modulates biofilm development using a mixed-species model containing both cariogenic (Streptococcus mutans) and arginolytic (Streptococcus gordonii) bacteria in the presence of sucrose. We observed that 1.5% (wt/vol) L-arginine (also a clinically effective concentration) exposure suppressed the outgrowth of S. mutans, favored S. gordonii dominance, and maintained Actinomyces naeslundii growth within biofilms (versus vehicle control). In parallel, topical L-arginine treatments substantially reduced the amounts of insoluble exopolysaccharides (EPS) by >3-fold, which significantly altered the three-dimensional (3D) architecture of the biofilm. Intriguingly, L-arginine repressed S. mutans genes associated with insoluble EPS (gtfB) and bacteriocin (SMU.150) production, while spxB expression (H 2 O 2 production) by S. gordonii increased sharply during biofilm development, which resulted in higher H 2 O 2 levels in arginine-treated biofilms. These modifications resulted in a markedly defective EPS matrix and areas devoid of any bacterial clusters (microcolonies) on the apatitic surface, while the in situ pH values at the biofilm-apatite interface were nearly one unit higher in arginine-treated biofilms (versus the vehicle control). Our data reveal new biological properties of L-arginine that impact biofilm matrix assembly and the dynamic microbial interactions associated with pathogenic biofilm development, indicating the multiaction potency of this promising biofilm disruptor. IMPORTANCEDental caries is one of the most prevalent and costly infectious diseases worldwide, caused by a biofilm formed on tooth surfaces. Novel strategies that compromise the ability of virulent species to assemble and maintain pathogenic biofilms could be an effective alternative to conventional antimicrobials that indiscriminately kill other oral species, including commensal bacteria. L-Arginine at 1.5% has been shown to be clinically effective in modulating cariogenic biofilms via alkali production by arginolytic bacteria. Using a mixed-species ecological model, we show new mechanisms by which L-arginine disrupts the process of biofilm matrix assembly and the dynamic microbial interactions that are associated with cariogenic biofilm development, without impacting the bacterial viability. These results may aid in the development of enhanced methods to control biofilms using L-arginine. Biofilms formed on surfaces are highly organized and structured microbial communities enmeshed in an extracellular matrix composed of polymeric substances, such as exopoly...

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“…Alkali production serves as a protection mechanism for ADS-positive bacteria (e.g., Streptococcus sanguinis, Streptococcus gordonii, and Streptococcus parasanguis) which are often not aciduric [8]. Incidentally, by protecting themselves, the bacteria create a less cariogenic environment [9,10]. Conversely, Ghosh et al.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Stability and Resilience of Oral Microcosms Toward Acidification and Candida Outgrowth by Arginine Supplementation

Koopman

Röling²,

Buijs

et al. 2014

Microb Ecol

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Dysbiosis induced by low pH in the oral ecosystem can lead to caries, a prevalent bacterial disease in humans. The amino acid arginine is one of the pH-elevating agents in the oral cavity. To obtain insights into the effect of arginine on oral microbial ecology, a multi-plaque "artificial mouth" (MAM) biofilm model was inoculated with saliva from a healthy volunteer and microcosms were grown for 4 weeks with 1.6 % (w/v) arginine supplement (Arginine) or without (Control), samples were taken at several time-points. A cariogenic environment was mimicked by sucrose pulsing. The bacterial composition was determined by 16S rRNA gene amplicon sequencing, the presence and amount of Candida and arginine deiminase system genes arcA and sagP by qPCR. Additionally, ammonium and short-chain fatty acid concentrations were determined. The Arginine microcosms were dominated by Streptococcus, Veillonella, and Neisseria and remained stable in time, while the composition of the Control microcosms diverged significantly in time, partially due to the presence of Megasphaera. The percentage of Candida increased 100-fold in the Control microcosms compared to the Arginine microcosms. The pH-raising effect of arginine was confirmed by the pH and ammonium results. The abundances of sagP and arcA were highest in the Arginine microcosms, while the concentration of butyrate was higher in the Control microcosms. We demonstrate that supplementation with arginine serves a health-promoting function; it enhances microcosm resilience toward acidification and suppresses outgrowth of the opportunistic pathogen Candida. Arginine facilitates stability of oral microbial communities and prevents them from becoming cariogenic.

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Oral Arginine Metabolism May Decrease the Risk for Dental Caries in Children

Cited by 72 publications

References 27 publications

Microbiomes of Site-Specific Dental Plaques from Children with Different Caries Status

Microbiomes of Site-Specific Dental Plaques from Children with Different Caries Status

l -Arginine Modifies the Exopolysaccharide Matrix and Thwarts Streptococcus mutans Outgrowth within Mixed-Species Oral Biofilms

Stability and Resilience of Oral Microcosms Toward Acidification and Candida Outgrowth by Arginine Supplementation

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