Hydrophobic interactions and the adherence of Streptococcus sanguis to hydroxylapatite

Abstract

Streptococcus sanguis demonstrated a high affinity for hydrocarbon solvents. When aqueous suspensions of the organism were mixed with either hexadecane or toluene, the cells tended to bind to the nonaqueous solvent. Increases in temperature resulted in a greater affinity of cells for hexadecane. Interaction between the cells and hexadecane was also enhanced by dilute aqueous sodium chloride and by low pH (pH < 5). The results suggest that the cell surface of S. sanguis has hydrophobic properties. Isolated cell walls also tended to partition into the nonaqueous solvent. Amino acid analyses of the walls revealed the presence of several amino acids which possess hydrophobic side chains. It is likely that the hydrophobic amino acids associated with the cell wall contribute to the hydrophobicity of intact S. sanguis. When the adherence of S. sanguis to saliva-coated hydroxylapatite was measured, it was found that hydrophobic bond-

Modifications of hydrophobicity, in vitro adherence and cellular aggregation of Streptococcus mutans by Helichrysum italicum extract

“…mutans strains implant worse in oral cavity than the more hydrophobic ones. Nesbitt et al (1982), indicated that the adherence of Strep. sanguis to saliva-coated hydroxyapatite (sHA) was strongly related to the bacterial-surface hydrophobicity.…”

Microbial adhesion to hydrocarbons: twenty-five years of doing MATH

“…We found that many oral bacteria are hydrophobic and adhere to hydrocarbons. We published our initial results in 1982, yet were preempted by Ron Doyle (University of Louisville) and his coworkers who reported on adhesion of Streptococcus sanguis to toluene droplets (Nesbitt et al, 1982). Ron Doyle, when I subsequently met him, was a most gracious 'victor' and we spent the next decade in close cooperation.…”

The hydrophobicity of Streptococcus salivarius strain HB and mutants deficient in adhesion to saliva-coated hydroxyapatite

“…Hydrophobic interactions may contribute to the adhesion of viridans streptococci to oral surfaces in vitro (Nesbitt et al 1982;Hogg et al 1983;Clark et al 1985) and Svanberg et al (1984) have shown that relatively highly hydrophobic strains of Streptococcus mutans implant significantly better in human mouths than less hydrophobic strains of the same species.…”