Advance In Vaccine For Tooth Decay

July 10, 2001 By Nancy Volkers InteliHealth News Service Researchers at The Forsyth Institute have discovered a potentially important antigen for a vaccine against tooth decay. In animal studies, the antigen produced a greater immune response than many previously tested antigens have. The antigen contained four protein pieces -- two copies each of two protein strips from an enzyme called glucosyltransferase (GTF), an important part of the decay process. A group of bacteria called mutans streptococci produce this enzyme, which is involved in breaking down sugar in the mouth and helping the bacteria stick to tooth surfaces. Researchers compared the activity of this antigen to others made from copies of each strip alone and a placebo vaccine that contained no antigen. The combination antigen produced the highest antibody levels, high enough to provide protection against decay. The four-protein antigen "was much more effective than either individual (protein strip) alone," said Martin Taubman, D.D.S., Ph.D., head of the Department of Immunology at Forsyth and a professor of oral biology at Harvard Medical School. The research is a step toward a possible vaccine for tooth decay, which dentists refer to as dental caries. "We have some very good clues as to when this vaccine should be administered to people," said Taubman. "Children are initially colonized with mutans streptococci between 19 and 36 months of age. Teeth come in at 6 months. We could interfere by immunizing at an early age, somewhere between one and one-and-a-half years of age." Research has established that children usually receive mutans streptococci from their mothers, but vaccinating mothers would be less effective, said Taubman. "In adults who are already colonized, you can't really eliminate (the bacteria). The levels will drop, but they eventually come back," he said. The researchers have approval for human clinical trials of a vaccine, and are looking for a partner or support to produce it. They are focusing on mucosal vaccines, which can be painted on or squirted into the nose, because they are easy to administer, cause fewer side effects, and are targeted to areas near the mouth. The research was published in the July issue of Infection and Immunity.

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