Dental caries, associated with plaque biofilm, is highly prevalent and significantly burdens public health. is the main cariogenic bacteria that adheres to the tooth surface and forms an abundant extracellular polysaccharide matrix (EPS) as a cariogenic biofilm scaffold. RNase III-encoding gene () and a putative chromosome segregation protein-encoding gene () are potentially associated with EPS production. In addition, complex interactions between and other oral microorganisms synergistically or antagonistically affect the cariogenicity. Commensal streptococci suppress the growth of cariogenic pathogens, whereas mediates the formation of cariogenic biofilm through aggregation and dual-species biofilm formation with . However, label-free detection of cariogenic microbial interactions with the EPS matrix is still challenging during laboratory investigations. Herein, we hypothesized that the operon affects EPS production and aimed to observe streptococci, , and using terahertz scanning near-field optical microscopy (THz s-SNOM). The light in the 0.1- to 0.3-THz frequency range interacted with the sample through a nano-probe tip by a point-by-point scanning process. Additional noise reduction of the original image was achieved by a dual kernel Gaussian filter. The monospecies of streptococci, mutants, and the dual-species of were scanned by THz s-SNOM. This technique provided terahertz near-field scanning images of mutants, streptococci, and dual-species of . Additional analysis of the original images potentially revealed the structures of the strains, such as cell diameters and cell wall thickness. In conclusion, the results suggested that the operon regulates EPS production. Furthermore, this novel label-free detection of a THz near-field scanning technique had the potential to observe the morphologies of bacterial cells and EPS matrix.
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http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/00220345241287733 | DOI Listing |
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC11653314 | PMC |
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