Journal of Dental Research, Vol 79, 1802-1807, Copyright © 2000 by International & American Associations for Dental Research Online Journals
The interactions of human neutrophils with the constituents of an experimental dental biofilm
L. Shapira, P. Tepper and D. Steinberg
Department of Periodontology, The Hebrew Univesity Hadassah Faculty of Dental Medicine, Jerusalem, Israel. shapiral@cc.huji.ac.il
Despite the antibacterial properties of neutrophils, their ability to
prevent colonization of the dental biofilm by pathogenic bacteria is
limited. The present study examined the ability of human neutrophils to
attach to an experimental dental biofilm and tested their antibacterial
functions following adhesion. Neutrophil adhesion was greatest to
hydroxyapatite (HA) in the absence of biofilm. Among the biofilms,
glucosyltransferase or fructosyltransferase adsorbed onto saliva-coated HA
showed the highest adhesion of cells. The adhesion of neutrophils was
directly related to their initial concentration in the solution and to the
duration of incubation. Plasma was found to reduce neutrophil attachment
significantly, while stimulation of the cells had no effect. Stimulation of
attached neutrophils induced superoxide secretion with levels significantly
lower than that secreted by suspended cells. The presence of neutrophils on
the biofilm reduced the number and the viability of Streptococcus mutans
attached to the beads. The present findings suggest that neutrophils are
able to attach to dental biofilms and that the attached neutrophils
retained their antibacterial activity.
