title: [Biofilms of the oral cavity. Formation, development and involvement in the onset of diseases related to bacterial plaque increase].
abstract: Biofilm is defined as a community of bacteria intimately associated with each other and included within an exopolymer matrix: this biological unit exhibits its own properties, quite different in comparison with those showed by the single species in planktonic form. The oral cavity appears as an open ecosystem, with a dynamic balance between the entrance of microrganisms, colonisation modalities and host defences aimed to their removal: to avoid elimination, bacteria need to adhere to either hard dental surfaces or epithelial surfaces. The oral biofilm formation and development, and the inside selection of specific microrganisms have been correlated with the most common oral pathologies, such as dental caries, periodontal disease and peri-implantitis. Many of these bacteria are usual saprophytes of the oral environment, that, in particular situations, can overcome and express their virulence factors: to better understand the mechanisms of these pathologies it's necessary to know the complex interactions between all the bacterial species inside the biofilm and host tissues and responses. The present paper is a review of the most significant studies on the biofilm development modalities, their correlations with either health or illness of the oral cavity, the bacterial co-aggregation strategies and the biofilm response to antimicrobial agents.
authors.affiliation: Facoltà di Medicina e Chirurgia, Cattedra di Parodontologia ed Implantologia, Università degli Studi, Pisa, Italy.
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Bortolaia
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Sbordone
mesh_terms: D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents / Q000494:pharmacology / Q000627:therapeutic use; D001422:Bacterial Adhesion; D018407:Bacterial Physiological Phenomena; D018441:Biofilms / Q000187:drug effects / Q000254:growth & development; D003731:Dental Caries / Q000209:etiology / Q000382:microbiology; D003773:Dental Plaque / Q000382:microbiology*; D006801:Humans; D009055:Mouth / Q000382:microbiology*; D010510:Periodontal Diseases / Q000209:etiology / Q000382:microbiology; D014070:Tooth / Q000382:microbiology; D014774:Virulence
chemical_list: D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents
vernacular_title: I biofilm del cavo orale. Formazione, sviluppo e implicazioni nell'insorgenza delle malattie correlate all'accumulo di placca batterica.