Initial colonization of teeth in monkeys as related to diet

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Abstract
The initial phases of plaque development on nonretentive tooth surfaces were studied bacteriologically in Macaca irus monkeys fed by stomach tube and provided with various oral supplements. Except for the oral implantation of Streptococcus mutans in some of the animals, the oral flora was not changed prior to the studies. Dental plaque was allowed to develop on initially cleaned tooth surfaces for 3-5 h. Plaque samples were collected and cultured on a number of selective and nonselective agar media, and several hundred isolates from each sample were isolated and identified. The numerically predominant organisms in initial plaque were S. mutans, S. sanguis and Actinomyces viscosus. Additional organisms regularly found, but usually in smaller numbers were S. mitior and a group of fastidious gram negative rods including Haemophilus spp., Eikenella corrodens and Actinobacillus actinomycetem-commitans. The colonization of S. mutans was dependent on sucrose and occurred at the expense of S. sanguis. In these experiments S. mutans accounted for 25-65% of the primary plaque formers. All other species encountered colonized the teeth irrespective of the diet. The early sucrose-dependent establishment of S. mutans directly on the enamel pellicle may play a key role in the development of a cariogenic plaque.