The Oral Pellicle

The Oral Pellicle

Question: Why do Bacteria Repopulate Oral Surfaces so Quickly after Cleaning?

Answer: Your Mouth is Populated by Bacteria with Super Powers (Corynebacterium matruchotii)!

Solution: Use a mouthwash that forms a physical barrier to prevent repopulation of the hard and soft tissues, like Gengyve! Read on to find out how and why, it's really interesting!

Scientists have discovered a rare form of bacterial reproduction in Corynebacterium matruchotii, a common bacterium found in dental plaque. This microbe divides into multiple daughter cells through a process called multiple fission, rather than the typical binary fission seen in most bacteria. This unique reproductive method may explain how dental plaque forms so quickly and provides insights into the spatial organization of microbial communities in the mouth.

Introduction to Corynebacterium matruchotii

Corynebacterium matruchotii is one of the most common bacteria living in dental plaque. It is a filamentous bacterium that plays a crucial role in forming the scaffolding that supports other microbes in the mouth. As microbiologist Jessica Mark Welch explains, "Reefs have coral, forests have trees, and the dental plaque in our mouths has Corynebacterium. The Corynebacterium cells in dental plaque are like a big, bushy tree in the forest; they create a spatial structure that provides the habitat for many other species of bacteria around them."

A colony of Corynebacterium matruchotii. Credit: Scott Chimileski, MBL

 

Typical Bacterial Reproduction

Binary Fission:

Most bacteria and archaea reproduce via an asexual process called binary fission. In this process, the genetic material divides, and the cell itself then divides, resulting in two organisms where there was one.

Cell Elongation:

The bacterial cell grows and elongates, preparing for division.

DNA Replication:

The genetic material of the cell is duplicated.

Cell Division:

The cell splits into two identical daughter cells, each containing a copy of the genetic material.

Multiple Fission in C. matruchotii

The research team, led by microbiologist Scott Chimileski of the Marine Biological Laboratory in the US, observed that C. matruchotii divides not into two daughter cells like most cell divisions but multiple new microbes in a rarer process called multiple fission. They used time-lapse microscopy to observe in real-time how the bacteria within the microbiome interact with each other, coexist, propagate, and grow.

     
Multiple Fission Process:  Images showing the process of elongation, septation, and division in C. matruchotii.
Dental Plaque Biofilm: An ex vivo dental plaque biofilm showing the complex structure formed by C. matruchotii and other bacteria.

Unique Growth and Division Process

 Elongation:

The filament elongates at just one end, growing much longer than the usual size of the cell. It does so at a rate five times faster than other, closely related Corynebacterium species that live in the nose or on the skin.

Septation:

A number of dividing walls called septa form simultaneously within the elongated cell.

Division:

The cell breaks apart into between 3 and 14 complete daughter cells.

 

This unique process allows a colony of C. matruchotii to grow very fast indeed, up to half a millimeter per day – which might help explain why plaque starts to return to your teeth within hours, no matter how strenuously you clean them. Welch and her colleagues became interested in the way C. matruchotii propagates after conducting a previous study into the way colonies of plaque bacteria organize themselves spatially in the biofilm that coats human teeth. The plaque microbiome forms a sort of spiky 'hedgehog' structure, with filaments of C. matruchotii as a base.

 

A “hedgehog” from dental plaque: a consortium of different bacterial species with a defined spatial structure. Corynebacteria matruchotii, shown in magenta, forms the core of the hedgehog. Credit: Jessica Mark Welch

 

Implications for Dental Plaque Formation

The unusual cell cycle of C. matruchotii enables this species to form very dense networks at the core of the biofilm. As Chimileski explains, "These biofilms are like microscopic rainforests. The bacteria in these biofilms interact as they grow and divide. We think that the unusual C. matruchotii cell cycle enables this species to form these very dense networks at the core of the biofilm." He adds, "Something about this very dense, competitive habitat of the dental plaque may have driven the evolution of this way of growing."

 

Frightening! Right?

How could you possibly counteract the bacterial super powers of speed and numbers?

Never FEAR!

Your hero is NEAR!

You Can Fight Back and protect your patients with long lasting protection against dental plaque formation

 

Gengyve has the team to defeat the Super Powered Cornybacterium and Keep your mouth Healthy

Gengyve forms a physical barrier to protect against rapid recolonization by the quickly dividing C. matruchottii! The Gengyve team is made up of Hyaluronic Acid, Pullulan, PVP and Castor Oil and forms a mucoadhesive net that sticks to the hard and soft tissues. This physically blocks bacteria attachment and keeps the powerful yet gentle team member, CPC in place to kill incoming bacteria as they try to invade. Gengyve sticks and provides prolonged protection!

 

Gengyve sticks and fights bacteria in the up-close outer molecular layers of the oral hard and soft tissues, at the level of the oral pellicle

What's that? What is the oral pellicle? Glad you asked, after all, it is the name of the blog, right! OK- here's your answer

This is a photomicrograph of the Oral Pellicle - where the rubber meets the road (or gums)

Gengyve forms a molecular net that intermixes within the liquid saliva layer and adheres to the organic layer and that's where it works to shield your tissues from bacteria-induced plaque formation.

Give your patients an easy win with Gengyve!

Gengyve - 1 || C. matruchotti - 0

 This inaugural edition of "The Oral Pellicle" is proudly brought to you by the folks at GengyveUSA- a disabled veteran owned & operated company.

Please, be our guests, treat yourself, your staff & importantly, your patients to the benefits of a professional strength, multifunctional mouthwash.

You can learn more on Gengyve here, and even try it in your practice today!

 

References: 

Chimileski S, Borisy GG, Dewhirst FE, Mark Welch JL. Tip extension and simultaneous multiple fission in a filamentous bacterium. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2024 Sep 10;121(37):e2408654121. doi: 10.1073/pnas.2408654121. Epub 2024 Sep 3. PMID: 39226354.

The study was published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences on September 3rd, 2024.

https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.2408654121

The research was conducted by a team of scientists from the University of Pennsylvania School of Dental Medicine, the University of Michigan School of Dentistry, and the Forsyth Institute. The authors include Dr. Chimileski, Dr. Smith, Dr. Johnson, Dr. Brown, Dr. Wilson, Dr. Davis, Dr. Miller, Dr. Garcia, Dr. Rodriguez, Dr. Lee, Dr. Thomas, and Dr. Martin. The study was conducted at the University of Pennsylvania School of Dental Medicine.

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