Initial acquisition and genetic identity of Streptococcus mutans of mother-child Pairs.
OBJECTIVE
This study's purpose was to investigate the transmission and genetic identity of Streptococcus mutans strains in mother-child pairs from Cordoba, Argentina in order to establish whether the mother was the main source of infection of the child.


METHODS
Seventeen mother-child pairs were analyzed, with samples taken of whole nonstimulated saliva and dental plaque when each child was 18 months old. The mothers gave their written, informed consent to participate in the study. The Streptococcus mutans strains were genotyped by the arbitrarily primed polymerase chain reaction (AP-PCR) technique using primers OPA-02, OPA-05, and OPA-13. Three statistical analyses were used to determine genetic identity (1) Dice similarity index, (2) principal coordinates analysis/minimum spanning tree (PCoA/MST) analysis, and (3) Neighbor-joining consensus tree.


RESULTS
The AP-PCR technique showed high genetic polymorphism in the S mutans strains. According to the Dice index, 10 of the 17 pairs presented genetic identity. Results from the PCoA/MST analysis and the Neighbor-joining consensus tree showed that 7 pairs presented high similarity and the other 3 showed moderate levels of similarity


CONCLUSIONS
According to the results obtained with 3 primers and with 3 different statistical methods, we could determine that the mothers are an important source of infection for the child at an early age.
Carletto-Körber
Fabiana P M
FP
Cátedra de Integral Niños y Adolescentes, Area Odontopediatría A, Facultad de Odontología, National University of Cordoba, Cordoba, Argentina. fabianacarletto@odo.unc.edu.ar
González-Ittig
Raúl E
RE
Jiménez
María G
MG
Cornejo
Lila S
LS
D004269:DNA, Bacterial / Q000032:analysis; D003773:Dental Plaque / Q000382:microbiology*; D005260:Female; D014644:Genetic Variation; D006801:Humans; D018445:Infectious Disease Transmission, Vertical; D012463:Saliva / Q000382:microbiology*; D013290:Streptococcal Infections / Q000382:microbiology / Q000635:transmission*; D013295:Streptococcus mutans / Q000145:classification* / Q000235:genetics / Q000302:isolation & purification
D004269:DNA, Bacterial