PURPOSE Streptococcus oralis and Streptococcus mitis belong to the Mitis group, which are mostly commensals in the human oral cavity. Even though S. oralis and S. mitis are oral commensals, they can be opportunistic pathogens causing infective endocarditis. A recent taxonomic re-evaluation of the Mitis group has embedded the species Streptococcus tigurinus and Streptococcus dentisani into the s...

We characterized the regulated activity of the lactococcal nisA promoter in strains of the gram-positive species Streptococcus pyogenes, Streptococcus agalactiae, Streptococcus pneumoniae, Enterococcus faecalis, and Bacillus subtilis. nisA promoter activity was dependent on the proteins NisR and NisK, which constitute a two-component signal transduction system that responds to the extracellular...

South Brazilian organic propolis (OP), which has never been studied before, was assessed and its chemical composition, scavenging potential of reactive oxygen species, antimicrobial and anti-inflammatory activities are herein presented. Based on the chemical profile obtained using HPLC, OP was grouped into seven variants (OP1-OP7) and all of them exhibited high scavenging activity, mainly again...

The in-vitro susceptibilities of 13 antimicrobial agents were determined for 207 isolates of viridans group streptococci recovered from patients with significant infections in Taiwan during 1995 and 1997. Variable degrees of susceptibility existed among nine species. High-level penicillin resistance (MIC > or = 4.0 mg/L) was found most frequently in Streptococcus oralis (35%), followed by Strep...

In normal human serum chelated with magnesium (10 mM) and ethylene glycotetraacetic acid (10 mM) (MgEGTA), the classical pathway of complement activation is blocked; however, the alternate pathway of complement activation is intact. Diplococcus pneumoniae, Staphylococcus albus, Streptococcus viridans, Streptococcus faecalis, and Serratia marcescens were opsonized in normal human serum containin...

Streptocus tmophilus, as a species designation (Orla-Jensen, 1919), has included those members of the nonhemolytic streptococci that possess the unusual combination of characteristics of extreme salt sensitivity, nonobligate thermophily, a rigorous fermentative pattern with respect to certain sugars (Sherman, 1937), and, based upon attempts to culture on synthetic media, a notoriety for nutriti...

OBJECTIVES Antimicrobial peptides are one of the factors involved in innate immunity. The susceptibility of periodontopathogenic and cariogenic bacteria to the major antimicrobial peptides produced by epithelia was investigated. METHODS Synthetic antimicrobial peptides of human beta-defensin-1 (hBD1), hBD2, hBD3 and LL37 (CAP18) were evaluated for their antimicrobial activity against oral bac...

This study aimed to establish the different prevalence of the microorganisms investigated in the two groups considered: fertile women with symptoms and asymptomatic women with infertility problems. The data from women (n= 952) investigated for two years for quality of genital discharge and the presence of Gardnerella vaginalis, Trichomonas vaginalis, Candida species, Streptococcus agalactiae, M...