Role of oral streptococci in the pH-dependent carious dentin

Abstract

The aim of the present study was to investigate the extent to which oral streptococci or lactic acid producing bacteria are able to regulate pH value, especially at low pH values associated with dentinal carious activity using a PCR method. One millimeter-thick sections were sliced from 24 extracted carious human molars. The pH values on the tooth sections were evaluated using a pH-imaging microscope. A dentin sample (1X1X1mm) was prepared from the areas with the lowest or highest pH and homogenized to extract bacterial genomic DNA. Specific primers were used for nested PCR to mutans streptococci (MS: Streptococcus mutans and Streptococcus sobrinus). Conserved primers were also used for PCR ..