Streptococcal natural products mediate interspecies competition with Gram-positive bacterial pathogens.

ABSTRACT: Polymicrobial communities where bacteria must compete with each other to persist can serve as a source of uncharacterized antibacterial compounds to develop drugs for the treatment of drug-resistant infections. This study investigates interbacterial competition between bacteria found in the oral cavity, where Streptococcus species comprise a large portion of the resident oral microbiota and Enterococcus faecalis is a pathobiont that is commonly found in root canal infections. We used co-cultures to determine whether oral Streptococci and E. faecalis compete with each other. Our experiments revealed that multiple strains of Streptococcus mutans , an important cariogenic bacterium, kill vancomycin-resistant Enterococcus and other Gram-positive bacteria, inc

SUBMITTER: Isenberg RY 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12324466 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Jul

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature