Anti-bacterial determinants of stannous fluoride.

The growth of bacteria on stainless steel wires was used as a model to investigate which properties of SnF2 produced anti-bacterial effects against S. mutans. Wire-adherent bacteria were exposed for one min, twice a day, to various fluoride or control compounds having similar ions, pH, valence, or atomic weights. After two days, the thickness of adherent bacteria was scored visually, and the decrease in pH of the growth medium was determined. Bacteria from each wire were then dried, weighed, and analyzed for metal content. Electron microscopy and electron microprobe were used to identify the location of heavy metal deposits in the bacteria. Only SnF2 dramatically altered S. mutans growth and metabolism, and this anti-bacterial effect was associated with a large uptake of tin into the bacterial cells. The fluoride salts of sodium, lead, zinc, and copper had little influence on S. mutans growth in this test system. The pH of the various fluoride salts or controls generally had no effect on the activity of the test compounds, except for the noted inactivation of SnF2 at elevated pH's. Since SnF4 did not alter the growth or metabolism of S. mutans, a unique property of SnF2--possibly the reactivity in an aqueous environment--may be responsible for its anti-bacterial properties.