Efficacy of Amixicile as a Targeted Anti-Periodontitis Therapy

Periodontitis is an infectious disease that is initiated by selected bacteria present within the oral microbiome. Consistent with that, current treatment therapies focus on elimination of the oral microbiome. However, those therapies are mainly mechanical and reduce the levels of both pathogenic and beneficial bacteria. Here we are reporting on a novel antimicrobial, amixicile, that selectively targets anaerobic bacteria while sparing aerotolerant ones. As most bacteria triggering periodontal disease are anaerobic ones this antimicrobial should show promise in managing this disease. To test this possibility, we used the most reliable model to examine the clinical usefulness of amixicile, the non-human primate (NHP) Macaca mulatta. Subgingival plaque from 12 individual teeth/animal was monitored over a period of 6 months following treatment with amixicile. Also, the animals were in controlled environment and were examined by periodontology experts. We monitored the composition of the microbiomes before and after treatment using 16S rRNA gene sequencing and correlated that profiling with clinical status of the animals. Overall, animals showed significant improvement in their periodontitis following therapy that correlated with reductions of anaerobes in their oral microbiomes.