Broad-spectrum inhibition for biofilm producers in dental decay by dextrnase purified from Lactobacillus fermentum

The irreversible solubilization of tooth mineral by acid produced by particular bacteria adhering to the tooth surface in bacterial populations known as dental plaque causes dental decay. When cultivated on dextran as a substrate, a Lactobacillus fermentum bacterial strain isolated from dental decay can create extracellular dextranase. Using ammonium sulfate at 65 percent saturation,followed by ion exchange chromatography on DEAECellulose column and gel filtration chromatography on sephadex G-100 column, dextranase was purified to homogeneity with a recovery yield of 39.40 percent and 3.43 fold purification. By swabbing over the gingival and subgingival region of dental decay, Gram positive bacteria such as Staphylococcus aureus, Streptococcus mitis, Streptococcus mutans, and Streptococcus oralis were isolated, and all of these isolates had varying amounts of biofilm development. All Gram-positive biofilm-forming bacteria (biofilm producers) were inhibited by purified dextrnase, with greater inhibition percentages of 69.09 percent and 65.5 percent against Streptococcus mutans and Streptococcus oralis, respectively. While the dextranase has a lesser inhibitory percentage of 30.7 percent and 33.2 percent against Streptococcus mitis and Staphylococcus aureus, respectively, it has a promising application for eliminating and preventing biofilm development, suggesting its prospective use in the dental industry.