Publications

Dental caries is a widely spread and prevalent disease. Dental caries cause serious problems in the oral cavity and elicit inflammations especially if left untreated. It is associated with various pathogenic microorganisms, including Streptococcus mutans, Candida albicans. Streptococcus mutans is the principle etiological agent of dental caries because they can produce high levels of dental caries-causing lactic acid and extracellular polysaccharide. Candida albicans is a causative organism for candidiasis. Bacterial plaque or biofilm formation is caused by lactic bacteria such as Lactobacillus fermentum and Staphylococcus aureus. Lactobacillus fermentum is associated with the progression of the lesion of dental caries, tooth enamel breakdown, and potential discoloration of the tooth surface. Dental plaque is known to be the primary cause of dental caries and other oral infections. It exists not only on the tooth surface but also under the gums. It can be defined as a diverse community of microorganisms in the form of a biofilm where the microorganisms bind tightly to one another in addition to the solid tooth surface, by means of an extracellular matrix consisting of polymers of both host and microbial origin. The main goal of this study is to evaluate the antimicrobial efficacy of extracts of two plants, namely Syzygium aromaticum and Malvae parviflora, against dental caries causing microorganisms. In addition, the ability of these extracts to prevent the formation of biofilms will be evaluated.