Research Updates: Cariogenic Mechanism of Streptococcus mutans

The prevalence of dental caries remains high, posing a major burden on the public health of the global society. Microorganisms are the main cause of dental caries, among which Streptococcus mutans (S. mutans) is one of the most widely recognized cariogenic bacteria. In recent years, the progress in research technology enabled the academic circle to conduct more in-depth research into caries-inducing S. mutans at the DNA, RNA and protein levels, and to gain thereby a new understanding of the surface structure and extracellular matrix composition of S. mutans. In this paper, we summarized recent findings on the cariogenic mechanism of S. mutans in order to help reveal more targets and potential approaches for the future development of caries prevention agents that target S. mutans, and to promote the development of dental caries prevention campaign.