Journal of Dental Research, Vol 63, 1126-1129, Copyright © 1984 by International & American Associations for Dental Research Online Journals
Effects of fluoride, lithium, and strontium on intracellular polysaccharide accumulation in S. mutans and A. viscosus
M. R. Wegman, A. D. Eisenberg, M. E. Curzon and S. L. Handelman
Fluoride (5 mg/l) consistently depressed the accumulation of intracellular
iodophilic polysaccharides (IPS) in Streptococcus mutans strains BHT, FA-1,
and GS-5 by over 90% and in Actinomyces viscosus strain RC-45 by over 50%.
There was little further reduction in IPS content when fluoride was
increased from 5 to 100 mg/l. Lithium (0 to 1 mg/l) neither enhanced nor
inhibited IPS accumulation, nor did it modify the inhibitory effects of
fluoride in three of the four strains tested. Strontium (0 to 100 mg/l) did
not alter IPS accumulation in S. mutans GS-5 but decreased accumulation
(less than 10%) in S. mutans FA-1 and BHT and significantly enhanced IPS
accumulation in A. viscosus RC-45. Analysis of variance indicated no
statistically significant interactions between fluoride and strontium,
fluoride and lithium, or strontium and lithium.
