The growth-inhibitory effect of the Enterococcus faecalis bacteriocin encoded by pAD1 extends to the oral streptococci.
Many strains of Enterococcus faecalis, a normal inhabitant of the oral cavity, elaborate a plasmid-encoded bacteriocin. The growth-inhibitory effect of this bacteriocin was observed to extend to a variety of pathogenic oral streptococci, including those that play a major role in tooth surface colonization and caries formation. These results suggest that transient colonization by bacteriocin-producing E. faecalis may effect shifts in oral colonization by susceptible organisms and that bacteriocin-producing E. faecalis may be a candidate for application in strain replacement therapy.
Jett
B D
BD
University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center, Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Oklahoma City 73190.
Gilmore
M S
MS
D001430:Bacteriocins / Q000494:pharmacology*; D004269:DNA, Bacterial / Q000235:genetics*; D004463:Ecology; D013293:Enterococcus faecalis / Q000235:genetics*; D006094:Gram-Positive Bacteria / Q000187:drug effects; D008826:Microbial Sensitivity Tests; D009055:Mouth / Q000382:microbiology*; D009693:Nucleic Acid Hybridization; D010957:Plasmids / Q000235:genetics; D012689:Sequence Homology, Nucleic Acid; D013291:Streptococcus / Q000187:drug effects*
D001430:Bacteriocins; D004269:DNA, Bacterial