Function-adaptive clustered nanoparticles reverse Streptococcus mutans dental biofilm and maintain microbiota balance

Dental plaques are biofilms that cause dental caries by demineralization with acidogenic bacteria. These bacteria reside inside a protective sheath which makes any curative treatment challenging. We propose an antibiotic-free strategy to disrupt the biofilm by engineered clustered carbon dot nanoparticles that function in the acidic environment of the biofilms. In vitro and ex vivo studies on the mature biofilms of Streptococcus mutans revealed >90% biofilm inhibition associated with the contact-mediated interaction of nanoparticles with the bacterial membrane, excessive reactive oxygen species generation, and DNA fragmentation. An in vivo examination showed that these nanoparticles could effectively suppress the growth of S. mutans. Importantly, 16S rRNA analysis of the dental microbiota showed that the diversity and richness of bacterial species did not substantially change with nanoparticle treatment. Overall, this study presents a safe and effective approach to decrease the dental biofilm formation without disrupting the ecological balance of the oral cavity. Ostadhossein et al. propose an antibiotic-free strategy to disrupt the biofilm by utilizing nanoparticles designed to function in the acidic environment of the biofilms. Phophonium ions functionalised carbon dot nanoclusters in a pH-sensitive polymer shell display dental biofilm inhibition without disrupting the ecological balance of the oral cavity.

Automated summary

The study proposes an antibiotic-free strategy to disrupt dental plaques using engineered nanoparticles designed to function in the acidic environment of biofilms. These nanoparticles interact with Streptococcus mutans, generating reactive oxygen species, resulting in biofilm inhibition without disrupting the ecological balance of the oral microbiota.