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Coffee brew is a widely consumed beverage with multiple biological activities due both to naturally occurring components and to the hundreds of chemicals that are formed during the roasting process. Roasted coffee extract possesses antibacterial activity against a wide range of microorganisms, including Staphylococcus aureus and Streptococcus mutans, whereas green coffee extract exhibits no such activity. The naturally occurring coffee compounds, such as chlorogenic acids and caffeine, cannot therefore be responsible for the significant antibacterial activity exerted by coffee beverages against both bacteria. The very low minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) found for standard glyoxal, methylglyoxal, and diacetyl compounds formed during the roasting process points to these alpha-dicarbonyl compounds as the main agents responsible for the antibacterial activity of brewed coffee against Sa. aureus and St. mutans. However, their low concentrations determined in the beverage account for only 50% of its antibacterial activity. The addition of caffeine, which has weak intrinsic antibacterial activity, to a mixture of alpha-dicarbonyl compounds at the concentrations found in coffee demonstrated that caffeine synergistically enhances the antibacterial activity of alpha-dicarbonyl compounds and that glyoxal, methylglyoxal, and diacetyl in the presence of caffeine account for the whole antibacterial activity of roasted coffee.

Wine contains a number of biologically active compounds with beneficial effects on human health. The antibacterial action of commercial red and white wines against oral streptococci responsible for caries development and against S. pyogenes responsible for pharyngitis was studied. Its postcontact effect against S. mutans was also studied. Both wines displayed activity. The compounds responsible for such activities were succinic, malic, lactic, tartaric, citric, and acetic acid. The synthetic mixtures of the organic acids tested at the concentrations found in wine had greater antibacterial activity than the beverages, indicating that in wine they are inhibited by other components. Wine polyphenols displayed no activity against oral streptococci or S. pyogenes. Findings show that wine is active against oral streptococci and S. pyogenes and suggest that it enhances oral health.

Green and roasted coffees of the two most used species, Coffea arabica and Coffea robusta, several commercial coffee samples, and known coffee components were analyzed for their ability to interfere with Streptococcus mutans' sucrose-independent adsorption to saliva-coated hydroxyapatite (HA) beads. All coffee solutions showed high antiadhesive properties. The inhibition of S. mutans' adsorption to HA beads was observed both when coffee was present in the adsorption mixture and when it was used to pretreat the beads, suggesting that coffee active molecules may adsorb to a host surface, preventing the tooth receptor from interacting with any bacterial adhesions. Among the known tested coffee components, trigonelline and nicotinic and chlorogenic acids have been shown to be very active. Dialysis separation of roasted coffee components also showed that a coffee component fraction with 1000 Da < MW < 3500 Da, commonly considered as low MW coffee melanoidins, may sensibly contribute to the roasted coffee's antiadhesive properties. The obtained results showed that all coffee solutions have antiadhesive properties, which are due to both naturally occurring and roasting-induced molecules.

Some beverages and foods protect tooth surfaces against Streptococcus mutans colonization. Adhesion of S. mutans is a crucial step in the initiation and development of dental caries. In this study, we showed that barley coffee (BC), a beverage made from roasted barley, interferes with S. mutans adsorption to hydroxyapatite (HA), and we identified its antiadhesive components. The effects of sublethal concentrations (sub-MICs) of BC on the adhesion of S. mutans to saliva-coated HA beads were assessed using three experimental approaches: (A) Beads were pretreated with BC before adding bacteria, (B) BC and bacteria were added to the beads simultaneously, and (C) streptococci grown in the presence of sub-MICs of BC were added to the beads. All treatments induced variable but significant inhibition of S. mutans sucrose-dependent and -independent adherence to HA. Similar results were obtained with other oral streptococci. BC components were fractioned by dialysis and gel filtration chromatography; the 1000 kDa MM fraction, which consists of a potent brown antioxidant, melanoidin, both displayed antiadhesive properties. High-MM melanoidin was not detected in unroasted barley, indicating that it forms during the roasting process. Results suggest that BC consumption may influence the colonization of tooth surfaces by cariogenic bacteria.