“Stamps” smart therapy against streptococcus Mutans: Review Article

Streptococcus mutans has been implicated as the major acid producing cariogenic bacteria. Dietary sugars and other factors may cause an imbalance of oral micro flora that permits S. mutans to become dominant in the multi-species bio films on the tooth surface, which could lead to dental caries. The application of broad-spectrum antimicrobials often results in recolonization, ecological disruption and re-dominance of S. mutans within oral flora resulting in secondary infections or other negative clinical consequences. To address this problem researchers have recently developed a new class of pathogen-selective molecules, called specifically (or selectively) targeted antimicrobial peptides (STAMPs), based on the fusion of a species specific targeting peptide domain with a wide spectrum antimicrobial peptide domain.