Antimicrobial activity of n-6, n-7 and n-9 fatty acids and their esters for oral microorganisms
Accepted 17 May 2010.
Abstract
Objective
This study is to assess the antibacterial activity of omega-6, -7, -9 (n-6, n-7, n-9) fatty acids against various oral microorganisms.
Methods
The n-6, n-7, n-9 fatty acids, such as γ-linoleic acid (GLA), linoleic acid (LA), arachidonic acid (ARA), palmitoleic acid (PA), and oleic acid (OA), their fatty acid ethyl esters, GLA-EE, LA-EE, ARA-EE, PA-EE, OA-EE, and their fatty acid methyl esters, GLA-ME, LA-ME, ARA-ME, PA-ME, OA-ME, were investigated for antimicrobial activity against oral pathogens Streptococcus mutans, Candida albicans, Aggregatibacter actinomycetemcomitans, Fusobacterium nucleatum, and Porphyromonas gingivalis. Various concentrations of the fatty acids, their methyl and ethyl esters were tested against various oral pathogens in 96-well plates and blood-agar plate. The plates were incubated anaerobically or aerobically at 37°C for 48h, and the colony forming units (CFU) were determined.
Results
The data demonstrated that select n-6, n-7, n-9 fatty acids and their esters exhibited strong antimicrobial activity against these oral microorganisms, demonstrating some specificity for individual microbial species.
Conclusion
The potential use or the combinations of the n-6, n-7, n-9 fatty acids and/or their esters, provided in a local delivery vehicle to infected sites in the oral cavity, could be considered as an additional therapeutic approach to improving oral health.
Center for Oral Health Research, College of Dentistry, University of Kentucky, Lexington, KY 40503, United States
Corresponding author at: Center for Oral Health Research, HSRB 161, College of Dentistry, Chandler Medical Center, University of Kentucky, Lexington, KY 40536, United States. Tel.: +1 859 323 5357; fax: +1 859 257 6566.
ABSTRACT