Influence of saliva from ‘heavy’ and ‘light’ plaque formers on the colloidal stability of bacterial suspensions: Short communication

Abstract

The influence of parotid saliva on the colloid stability of suspensions of Streptococcus sanguis and 5. salivarius was studied in groups of previously identified ‘heavy’ and ‘light’ plaque formers. For S. sanguis it was observed that addition of parotid saliva from light plaque formers had more pronounced negative influence on the colloid stability than addition of such saliva from heavy plaque formers. No differences were observed for 5. salivarius. The results indicate that saliva and bacteria might be regarded as a biological colloidal system and that the individual rate of plaque formation can perhaps be partially related to the colloid-chemical properties of bacteria and saliva.