Dental plaque - A microbial perspective and recent concepts as a host and guest relation

Dental plaque is defined clinically as a structured, resilient yellow grayish substance that adheres tenaciously to the intra-oral hard surfaces i.e teeth including removable and fixed restorations. It is primarily composed of micro-organisms. One gram of plaque contains approximately 1011 bacteria. Any individual may harbor 150 or more different species. Non bacterial microorganisms that are found in plaque include archaea, yeasts, protozoa and viruses. Nowadays application of novel imaging and molecular techniques has created great understanding about dental plaque. This article is an insight of host and guest relation of dental plaque in terms of micro-organisms as guest and humans as host.