PT  - JOURNAL ARTICLE
AU  - Xiaoyu Tang
AU  - Yuta Kudo
AU  - Jonathon Baker
AU  - Sandra LaBonte
AU  - Peter A. Jordan
AU  - Shaun M. K. McKinnie
AU  - Jian Guo
AU  - Tao Huan
AU  - Bradley S. Moore
AU  - Anna Edlund
TI  - Cariogenic <em>Streptococcus mutans</em> produces strain-specific antibiotics that impair commensal colonization
AID  - 10.1101/755025
DP  - 2019 Jan 01
TA  - bioRxiv
PG  - 755025
4099  - http://biorxiv.org/content/early/2019/09/19/755025.short
4100  - http://biorxiv.org/content/early/2019/09/19/755025.full
AB  - Streptococcus mutans is a common constituent of dental plaque and an etiologic agent of dental caries (tooth decay). Here we elucidate a biosynthetic pathway, encoded by globally distributed strains of S. mutans, which produces a series of bioactive small molecules including reutericyclin and two N-acyl tetramic acid analogues active against oral commensal bacteria. This pathway may provide S. mutans with a competitive advantage, promoting dysbiosis and caries pathogenesis.