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Glycan-binding specificities of Streptococcus mutans and Streptococcus sobrinus lectin-like adhesins

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Abstract

Since the adhesion of bacteria to the tooth surface is a prerequisite for dental plaque and subsequent caries development, a promising caries preventive strategy could be to block the lectin–glycan-mediated adherence of cariogenic bacteria. The aim of the study was to evaluate potential differences in glycan-binding specificities of two Streptococcus mutans strains (DSM 20523 and DSM 6178) and Streptococcus sobrinus (DSM 20381). A competitive enzyme-linked lectin-binding assay was used to identify the binding specificities of isolated bacterial surface lectins. Blotting of the microbial proteins on neoglycoprotein-coated PVP membranes enabled a qualitative protein analysis of all specific bacterial lectins. Different glycan-binding sites could be identified for the S. mutans strains in comparison to S. sobrinus. An earlier reported glycan-binding specificity for terminal galactose residues could be confirmed for the S. mutans strains. For the S. sobrinus strain, more than one glycan-binding specificity could be found (oligomannose and terminal sialyl residues). Each of the tested strains showed more than one surface lectin responsible for the specific lectin-binding with varying molecular weight (S. mutans, 90/155 kDa and S. sobrinus, 35/45 kDa). The established experimental setup could be used as future standard procedure for the identification of bacterial lectin-derived binding specificities. The findings from this study might serve as basis for the design of an individual ‘glycan cocktail’ for the competitive inhibition of lectin-mediated adhesion of mutans streptococci to oral surfaces.

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The authors declare that they have no conflicts of interest.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Operative and Preventive Dentistry, Charité, Humboldt University, Berlin, Germany

    Viviane Schüler & Rainer Seemann

  2. Department of Preventive, Restorative and Pediatric Dentistry, University of Bern, Freiburgstrasse 7, 3010, Bern, Switzerland

    Adrian Lussi & Rainer Seemann

  3. Technical University Berlin, Berlin, Germany

    Andreas Kage

Authors
  1. Viviane Schüler
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  2. Adrian Lussi
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  3. Andreas Kage
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  4. Rainer Seemann
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Correspondence to Rainer Seemann.

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Schüler, V., Lussi, A., Kage, A. et al. Glycan-binding specificities of Streptococcus mutans and Streptococcus sobrinus lectin-like adhesins. Clin Oral Invest 16, 789–796 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00784-011-0568-1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00784-011-0568-1

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