HERBAL ANTAGONISM TO THE PATHOGENIC MICROBES RESPONSIBLE FOR ORAL INFECTION.

The mouth contains a wide variety of oral bacteria, but only a few specific species of bacteria are believed to cause dental caries: Streptococcus mutans and Staphylococcus species among them. These organisms can produce high levels of lactic acid following fermentation of dietary sugars, and are resistant to the adverse effects of low pH. These bacterial strains, most notably S. Mutans can be inherited by a child from a caretaker's kiss or through feeding premasticated food. Dental Caries (DC), periodontitis and Oral Candidiasis (OC) are widespread disorders. According to the World Health Organization, 60-90% of worldwide school-children has dental caries. These microbes are highly responsible for causing dental caries are treated in vitro with the help of guava leaf extract prepared in laboratory conditions and then checked and summarized. The microbes were first isolated using selective media and fresh pure cultures were prepared which were further cross checked performing staining procedure as well as biochemical test. These pure cultures were then treated with the hexane and ethanol extractives of guava (Psidium guajava) leaves. Preparative Thin Layer Chromatography (Prep TLC) is a useful technique for the purification of small quantities of sample. Because it allows for rapid separation of a number of components in a reaction mixture, it is especially useful for obtaining a profile of the products of a test reaction or the components of natural extracts.