Signal peptide pheromones in oral streptococcal biofilms

Abstract

Oral streptococci are known to modulate various physiological properties by responding to secreted signal peptide pheromones. These molecules accumulate in the environment and trigger a genetic response in the target cells at a threshold cell density, thereby synchronising a metabolic outcome with population density. In this review, we summarise how signal peptide pheromones of oral streptococci function. The possibility of targeting these peptide pheromones for the prevention of biofilm-associated infections such as dental caries is also discussed.