Effect of inoculation sequence and nutrients uponStreptococcus mutansBHT andStreptococcus mitiorLPA-1 growing on human teeth in an artificial mouth

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Abstract
Human teeth in an artificial mouth were inoculated with S. mutans BHT, S. mitior LPA-1 or sequentially with both organisms. Incubation was continued for 90 h. Mixed populations were largest when a nutrient supplement containing 5.0% (wt/vol) sucrose was supplied. Fewer organisms were recovered from experiments with synthetic saliva only, or when a supplement containing 0.05% (wt/vol) glucose was available. The inoculation sequence determined the total viable count and a larger population resulted when S. mutans was the initial colonizer (P < 0.01). S. mutans was always able to become established even when superinfected onto a 24 h plaque of S. mitior. The final proportion of S. mutans was lower when it was the superinfecting organism and the sucrose (P < 0.01) or glucose (P < 0.05) nutrient supplement was provided. This work confirms the importance of inoculation sequence and presence of sugars in plaque accumulation, and demonstrates the fundamental role of microbial interactions in this process.