Figure 5
Inhibition of dental caries in rat model. (a) Micro-CT analysis of interproximal caries in S. mutans- and S. sobrinus-infected rats. For in vivo experiments, 15 infection-free rats were randomly divided equally into three groups (group 1, 2 and 3). All groups were infected with S. mutans and S. sobrinus. Group 1 did not receive Fabs. Group 2 only received 2 weeks of Fab treatment. Group 3 received 4 weeks of Fab treatment. At the end of the fourth week, rats were sacrificed, mandibles and maxilla were collected and fixed with 70% ethanol for 24 hours and analyzed by micro-CT. (b) Number of rats in each group showing caries. Caries were detected and counted by micro-CT. (c). Percentage of molars showing caries. Each rat has 12 molars. We checked for caries using micro-CT in a total of 60 molar teeth in each group (5 rats in each group). This experiment was repeated 2 times. Error bars indicate standard deviation. * represents P-values < 0.0001.
