This Article Abstract Full Text (PDF) Alert me when this article is cited Alert me if a correction is posted Citation Map Services Email this article to a friend Similar articles in this journal Similar articles in PubMed Alert me to new issues of the journal Add to Saved Citations Download to citation manager Request Permissions Request Reprints Add to My Marked Citations Citing Articles Citing Articles via Google Scholar Citing Articles via Scopus Google Scholar Articles by Toda, Y. Articles by Hamada, S. Search for Related Content PubMed PubMed Citation Articles by Toda, Y. Articles by Hamada, S. Social Bookmarking                         What's this?

Ultrastructure of Extracellular Polysaccharides Produced by Serotype c Streptococcus mutans

Departments of Anatomy and Pathology, Nihon University School of Dentistry, Kanda-Surugadai, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo 101

I. Moro

Departments of Anatomy and Pathology, Nihon University School of Dentistry, Kanda-Surugadai, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo 101

T. Koga

Department of Dental Research, The National Institute of Health, Kamiosaki, Shinagawa-ku, Tokyo 141, Japan

H. Asakawa

Department of Dental Research, The National Institute of Health, Kamiosaki, Shinagawa-ku, Tokyo 141, Japan

S. Hamada

Department of Dental Research, The National Institute of Health, Kamiosaki, Shinagawa-ku, Tokyo 141, Japan

The ultrastructure of extracellular polysaccharides produced in colonies by two clinical isolates and that of a nitrosoguanidine-induced mutant of serotype c Streptococcus mutans with different polysaccharide-synthesizing abilities were compared electron-microscopically. A large amount of polysaccharide was produced from sucrose by colonies of typical serotype c strain MT8148R and a clinical variant MT6801R with an enhanced fructan-synthesizing ability. Transmission electron-microscopy (TEM) revealed that the polysaccharides consisted of three structural components, i.e., globular, single-stranded filamentous, and double-stranded fibrillar structures. These structures were ascribed to production of fructan, water-soluble glucan, and water-insoluble glucan, respectively. On the other hand, two kinds of structures, a globular body and an amorphous substance, were observed by scanning electron-microscopy (SEM). The former was composed of fructan, while the latter contained a mixture of water-soluble and water-insoluble glucans which formed filamentous and double-stranded fibrillar structures under TEM. Very small quantities of polysaccharides were formed in colonies of mutant NG7183, which was derived from S. mutans MT6801R. This strain was found to possess low glucan- and no fructan-synthesizing abilities. The polysaccharides produced in colonies of mutant NG7183 were composed only of filamentous and double-stranded fibrils under TEM. A small amount of amorphous substance was observed by SEM in colonies of NG7183.

REFERENCES

• Ainsworth, S.K.; Ito, S.; and Karnovsky, M.J. (1972): Alkaline Bismuth Reagent for High Resolution. Ultrastructural Demonstration of Periodate-reactive Sites, J Histochem Cytochem 20:995-1005.[Abstract]
• Guggenheim, B. (1970): Extracellular Polysaccharides and Microbial Plaque, Int Dent J 20:657-678.[Medline] [Order article via Infotrieve]
• Guggenheim, B. and Schroeder, H.E. (1967): Biochemical and Morphological Aspects of Extracellular Polysaccharides Produced by Cariogenic Streptococci, Helv Odont Acta 11:131-152.[Medline] [Order article via Infotrieve]
• Hamada, S.; Koga, T.; and Okahashi, N. (1983): Characterization of a Mutant of Serotype g Streptococcus mutans Strain 6715 Lacking Dextran-induced Agglutination, Zentralbl Bakteriol Mikrobiol Hyg (A) 254: 343-351.
• Hamada, S.; Mizuno, J.; Murayama, Y.; Ooshima, T.; Masuda, N.; and Sobue, S. (1975): Effect of Dextranase on the Extracellular Polysaccharide Synthesis of Streptococcus mutans: Chemical and Scanning Electron Microscopy Studies, Infect Immun 12:1415-1425.[Abstract/Free Full Text]
• Hamada, S. and Slade, H.D. (1980): Biology, Immunology, and Cariogenicity of Streptococcus mutans, Microbiol Rev 44:331-384.[Free Full Text]
• Inoue, M.; Yakushiji, T.; and Takehara, T. (1982): Ultrastructural Changes Produced in the Oral Bacterium Streptococcus mutans Glucans by the Action of Endo--1,3-Glucanase, Arch Oral Biol 27:753-757.[Medline] [Order article via Infotrieve]
• Johnson, M.C.; Bozzola, J.J.; and Shechmeister, I.L. (1974): Morphological Study of Streptococcus mutans and Two Extracellular Polysaccharide Mutants, J Bacteriol 118:304-311.[Abstract/Free Full Text]
• Koga, T.; Asakawa, H.; Okahashi, N.; and Hamada, S. (1986): Sucrose-dependent Cell Adherence and Cariogenicity of Serotype c Streptococcus mutans, J Gen Microbiol 13:2873-2883.
• Nalbandian, J.; Freedman, M.L.; Tanzer, J.M.; and Lovelace, S.M. (1974): Ultrastructure of Mutants of Streptococcus mutans with Reference to Agglutination, Adhesion, and Extracellular Polysaccharide, Infect Immun 10:1170-1179.[Abstract/Free Full Text]
• Newbrun, E. (1976): Polysaccharide Synthesis in Plaque. In: Proceedings, Microbial Aspects of Dental Caries, H.M. Stiles, W.J. Loesche, and T.C. O'Brien, Eds., Sp. Supp. Microbiology Abstracts, Washington: Information Retrieval, Inc., pp. 649-664.
• Newman, H.N.; Donoghue, H.D.; and Britton, A.B. (1976): Effect of Glucose and Sucrose on the Survival in Batch Culture of Streptococcus mutans C67-1 and a Non-Cariogenic Mutant C67-25. Morphological Studies, Microbios 15:113-125.[Medline] [Order article via Infotrieve]
• Okahashi, N.; Asakawa, H.; Koga, T.; Masuda, N.; and Hamada, S. (1984): Clinical Isolates of Streptococcus mutans Serotype c with Altered Colony Morphology Due to Fructan Synthesis, Infect Immun 44:617-622.[Abstract/Free Full Text]
• Sato, S.; Koga, T.; and Inoue, M. (1984): Isolation and Some Properties of Extracellular D-Glucosyltransferases and D-Fructosyltransferases from Streptococcus mutans Serotypes c, e, and f, Carbohydr Res 134:293-304.
• Spurr, A.R. (1969): A Low-viscosity Epoxy Resin Embedding Medium for Electron Microscopy, J Ultrastruct Res 26:31-43.[CrossRef][Medline] [Order article via Infotrieve]
• Yakushiji, T. and Inoue, M. (1980): Ultrastructure of Glucans Produced by Cell-bound Glucosyltransferase of the Oral Bacterium Streptococcus mutans AHT, Arch Oral Biol 25:297-303.[Medline] [Order article via Infotrieve]
• Yakushiji, T.; Inoue, M.; and Koga, T. (1984): Inter-serotype Comparison of Polysaccharides Produced by Extracellular Enzymes from Streptococcus mutans, Carbohydr Res 127:253-266.[CrossRef][Medline] [Order article via Infotrieve]
• Yakushiji, T.; Koga, T.; and Inoue, M. (1981): Morphology of Water-insoluble and Water-soluble Glucans of the Dental Plaque Organism Streptococcus mutans AHT and Their Interaction with the Cell Surface Envelope, Arch Oral Biol 26:931-937.[Medline] [Order article via Infotrieve]

Journal of Dental Research, Vol. 66, No. 8, 1364-1369 (1987)
DOI: 10.1177/00220345870660081601


CiteULike    Complore    Connotea    Del.icio.us    Digg    Reddit    Technorati    Twitter    What's this?

This Article Abstract Full Text (PDF) Alert me when this article is cited Alert me if a correction is posted Citation Map Services Email this article to a friend Similar articles in this journal Similar articles in PubMed Alert me to new issues of the journal Add to Saved Citations Download to citation manager Request Permissions Request Reprints Add to My Marked Citations Citing Articles Citing Articles via Google Scholar Citing Articles via Scopus Google Scholar Articles by Toda, Y. Articles by Hamada, S. Search for Related Content PubMed PubMed Citation Articles by Toda, Y. Articles by Hamada, S. Social Bookmarking                         What's this?