Isolation of Streptococcus mutans temperate bacteriophage with broad killing activity to S. mutans clinical isolates

Katsuhito Sugai; Miki Kawada-Matsuo; Mi Nguyen-Tra Le; Yo Sugawara; Junzo Hisatsune; Jumpei Fujiki; Hidetomo Iwano; Kotaro Tanimoto; Motoyuki Sugai; Hitoshi Komatsuzawa

doi:10.1016/j.isci.2023.108465

Isolation of Streptococcus mutans temperate bacteriophage with broad killing activity to S. mutans clinical isolates

iScience. 2023 Nov 14;26(12):108465. doi: 10.1016/j.isci.2023.108465. eCollection 2023 Dec 15.

Authors

Katsuhito Sugai¹, Miki Kawada-Matsuo^{2

3}, Mi Nguyen-Tra Le^{2

3}, Yo Sugawara⁴, Junzo Hisatsune⁴, Jumpei Fujiki⁵, Hidetomo Iwano⁵, Kotaro Tanimoto¹, Motoyuki Sugai⁴, Hitoshi Komatsuzawa^{2

3}

Affiliations

¹ Department of Orthodontics, Hiroshima University Graduate School of Biomedical and Health Sciences, 1-2-3, Kasumi,Minamiku, Hiroshima-shi, Hiroshima 734-8553, Japan.
² Department of Bacteriology, Hiroshima University Graduate School of Biomedical and Health Sciences, 1-2-3,Kasumi,Minamiku, Hiroshima-shi, Hiroshima 734-8553, Japan.
³ Project Research Center for Oral Infectious Diseases, Hiroshima University, 1-2-3, Kasumi,Minamiku, Hiroshima-shi, Hiroshima 734-8553, Japan.
⁴ Antimicrobial Resistance Research Center, National Institute of Infectious Diseases, 1-23-1, Toyama, Shinjukuku, Tokyoto, Japan.
⁵ Laboratory of Veterinary Biochemistry, Department of Veterinary Medicine, Rakuno Gakuen University, 568,Bunkyodaimidorimachi, Ebetsu-shi, Hokkaido 069-0836, Japan.

Abstract

Bacteriophages are expected to be therapeutic agents against infectious diseases. Streptococcus mutans are involved in dental plaque formation related to dental caries and periodontitis. In S. mutans, lytic bacteriophages have been isolated previously, but the isolation of temperate bacteriophage has not been reported although their presence in the genome has been confirmed. Here, we report the isolation of temperate bacteriophage, φKSM96, from S. mutans. φKSM96 has a circular DNA 39,820 bp long and reveals Siphoviridae morphology. φKSM96 shows a broad range of susceptibility against S. mutans strains with different serotypes. By the addition of φKSM96, S. mutans growth and biofilm formation were significantly inhibited. In cocultures of S. mutans with other bacterial species, the proportion of S. mutans significantly decreased in the presence of φKSM96. In summary, φKSM96 shows selective anti-S. mutans activity. The isolation of temperate bacteriophage is important for future genetic manipulation to create more efficient bacteriophages.

Keywords: Microbiology; Virology.