A tooth-binding antimicrobial peptide to prevent the formation of dental biofilm

• Published in: Journal of materials science. Materials in medicine Vol. 30; no. 4; pp. 45 - 9
• Main Authors: Zhang, Li-yu, Fang, Ze-hui, Li, Quan-li, Cao, Chris Ying
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: New York Springer US 01.04.2019; Springer Nature B.V
• Subjects: Animals; Anti-Bacterial Agents - metabolism; Anti-Bacterial Agents - pharmacology; Anti-Infective Agents - metabolism; Anti-Infective Agents - pharmacokinetics; Antibiotics; Antiinfectives and antibacterials; Antimicrobial agents; Antimicrobial peptides; Binding; Biocompatibility; Biofilms; Biofilms - drug effects; Biomaterials; Biomaterials Synthesis and Characterization; Biomedical Engineering and Bioengineering; Biomedical materials; Cattle; Ceramics; Chemistry and Materials Science; Composites; Dental caries; Dental Caries - microbiology; Dental Caries - prevention & control; Dental enamel; Dental plaque; Dental Plaque - microbiology; Dental Plaque - prevention & control; Glass; In vivo methods and tests; Inhibition; Materials Science; Mesenchyme; Microbial Sensitivity Tests; Microscopy, Electron, Scanning; Minimum inhibitory concentration; Natural Materials; Optical density; Peptide Fragments - metabolism; Peptide Fragments - pharmacokinetics; Peptide synthesis; Peptides; Polymer Sciences; Protein Binding; Rabbits; Regenerative Medicine/Tissue Engineering; Scanning electron microscopy; Scanning transmission electron microscopy; Solid phases; Stem cells; Streptococcus infections; Streptococcus mutans - drug effects; Surface Properties; Surfaces and Interfaces; Teeth; Thin Films; Tooth - metabolism
• ISSN: 0957-4530; 1573-4838
• DOI: 10.1007/s10856-019-6246-6

Dental caries is primarily caused by pathogenic bacteria infection, and Streptococcus mutans is considered a major cariogenic pathogen. Moreover, antimicrobial peptides have been considered an alternative to traditional antibiotics in treating caries. This study aimed to design a tooth-binding antimicrobial peptide and evaluate its antimicrobial efficacy against S. mutans . An antimicrobial peptide of polyphemusin I (PI) was modified by grafting a tooth-binding domain of diphosphoserine (Ser(p)-Ser(p)-) to create the peptide of Ser(p)-Ser(p)-polyphemusin I (DPS-PI). PI and DPS-PI were synthesized by Fmoc solid-phase peptide synthesis. The minimum inhibitory concentration of PI and DPS-PI against S. mutans were tested. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) were used to observe the growth of S. mutans on PI and DPS-PI treated enamel surfaces. The growth of S. mutans was evaluated by optical density (OD) at 590 nm. Inhibition of dental plaque biofilm development in vivo were investigated. The cytocompatibility to bone mesenchymal stem cells (BMSCs) was tested. The MIC of PI and DPS-PI were 40 and 80 μg/ml, respectively. SEM images showed that S. mutans were sparsely distributed on the DPS-PI treated enamel surface. OD findings indicated that DPS-PI maintained its inhibition effect on S. mutans growth after 24 h. The incisor surfaces of rabbits treated with DPS-PI developed significantly less dental plaque biofilm than that on PI treated surfaces. The DPS-PI had good biocompatibility with the cells. We successfully constructed a novel tooth-binding antimicrobial peptide against S. mutans in vitro and inhibited dental plaque biofilm development in vivo. DPS-PI may provide a feasible alternative to conventional antibiotics for the prevention and treatment of dental caries. Dental caries is primarily caused by pathogenic bacteria infection, and Streptococcus mutans is considered a major cariogenic pathogen. A tooth-binding antimicrobial peptide was designed by grafted diphosphoserine (-Ser(p)-Ser(p)-) to the structure of polyphemusin I. This novel tooth-binding antimicrobial peptide can inhibit dental plaque biofilm development and thus provide a feasible alternative to conventional antibiotics for the prevention and treatment of dental caries.