In vitro growth characteristics and volatile sulfur compound production of Solobacterium moorei.
Solobacterium moorei has recently been implicated as a causative agent of halitosis. In vitro experiments to evaluate the role of S. moorei in halitosis have, however, been complicated by a paucity of information on the ideal conditions for culturing this organism. This work aimed to optimize a liquid culture medium for S. moorei, and to determine the growth-curve of the organism. Further, the ability of S. moorei to generate volatile sulfur compounds was investigated and compared quantitatively to other oral anaerobes by an optimized head-space gas chromatography method. Serum-supplementation of standard liquid growth media gave greater growth of S. moorei than non-supplemented broths, with the best medium found to be serum-supplemented tryptone soya broth. S. moorei was able to metabolize cysteine directly to hydrogen sulfide, but was unable to produce methanethiol from methionine. S. moorei produced 2-3 times more hydrogen sulfide (normalized for colony forming units) than Porphyromonas gingivalis and Veillonella dispar, but considerably less than Fusobacterium nucleatum. The study has identified reliable growth conditions for culture of S. moorei, which were employed to show that S. moorei has the requisite biochemistry consistent with a potential role in halitosis.
Faculty of Science, Engineering and Computing, Kingston University, Penrhyn Road, Kingston-upon-Thames KT1 2EE, United Kingdom. Electronic address: a.s.stephen@qmul.ac.uk.
Abish S
AS
Stephen
Faculty of Science, Engineering and Computing, Kingston University, Penrhyn Road, Kingston-upon-Thames KT1 2EE, United Kingdom.
Declan P
DP
Naughton
GlaxoSmithKline Consumer Healthcare, St. George's Avenue, Weybridge KT13 ODE, United Kingdom.
Robert L
RL
Pizzey
GlaxoSmithKline Consumer Healthcare, St. George's Avenue, Weybridge KT13 ODE, United Kingdom.
David J
DJ
Bradshaw
GlaxoSmithKline Consumer Healthcare, St. George's Avenue, Weybridge KT13 ODE, United Kingdom.
Gary R
GR
Burnett
D002849:Chromatography, Gas; D003470:Culture Media / Q000737:chemistry; D003545:Cysteine / Q000378:metabolism; D006094:Gram-Positive Bacteria / Q000254:growth & development* / Q000302:isolation & purification / Q000378:metabolism*; D006209:Halitosis / Q000382:microbiology; D006801:Humans; D006862:Hydrogen Sulfide / Q000378:metabolism*
D003470:Culture Media; D003545:Cysteine; D006862:Hydrogen Sulfide
Halitosis; Hydrogen sulfide; Microbial ecology; Microbiology; Plaque; Volatile sulfur compounds