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Home>THE SCIENCE OF LISTERINE®>TECHNICAL INNOVATIONS>4 ESSENTIAL OILS>Gram-Positive/Gram-Negative Bacteria

LISTERINE® Antiseptic Germ Kill

LISTERINE® Antiseptic rinses kill bacteria to penetrate plaque biofilm

AT FULL STRENGTH, LISTERINE® ANTISEPTIC HAS A BROAD SPECTRUM OF BACTERIAL KILL

LISTERINE® Antiseptic lyses, kills, and inhibits growth of both gram-positive and gram-negative bacteria.1-7 The superior antimicrobial action8 DESTROYS the bacterial cell surface,9  INHIBITS biofilm growth,9 and INCREASES the time it takes for bacteria to grow back.10

Specifically, LISTERINE® Antiseptic kills:

Gram-Positive Bacteria (+)
Actinomyces naeslundii
Actinomyces viscosus
Staphylococcus aureus
Streptococcus mutans
Streptococcus sanguinis
Lactobacillus acidophilus
Enterococcus faecalis*
Streptococcus pyogenes 
Streptococcus gordonii

Gram-Negative Bacteria (-)
Aggregatibacter actinomycetemcomitans
Porphyromonas gingivalis
Prevotella intermedia 
Bacteroides loescheii
Eikenella corrodens
Fusobacterium nucleatum
Klebsiella pneumoniaue*
Leptotrichia buccalis 
Pseudomonas aeruginosa*

Gram-Neutral Bacteria
Candida albicans (yeast)11

30 Second Rinse

30-Second Rinse

Find out how LISTERINE® Brand rinses clean the mouth in 30 seconds

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RAPID FUSION TECHNOLOGY™

RAPID FUSION TECHNOLOGY®

Formulated to provide greater fluoride uptake

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LISTERINE® ANTISEPTIC GERM KILL - footnotes/references

*Tests were run at 1-minute time point.

References: 1. Fine DH, Letizia J, Mandel ID. The effect of rinsing with Listerine antiseptic on the properties of developing dental plaque. J Clin Periodontol. 1985;12:660-666. 2. Ricci-Nittel D, Fourre T. In vivo evaluation of antimicrobial activity of an essential-oil mouthrinse. Presented at: General Session of the International Association for Dental Research: March 16-19, 2011; San Diego, CA. 3. Ross NM, Charles CH, Dills SS. Long-term effects of Listerine antiseptic on dental plaque and gingivitis. J Clin Dent. 1989;1(4):92-95. 4. Drake D, Villhauer AL. An in vitro comparative study determining bactericidal activity of stabilized chlorine dioxide and other oral rinses. J Clin Dent. 2011;22(1):1-5. 5. Andreana S, Nittel-Ricci D, Wu MM, Harper DS, Baxter KA. In vitro antimicrobial activity of vanilla mint Listerine® antiseptic mouthrinse. Presented at: IADR/AADR/CADR 85th General Session and Exhibition. March 2007. 6. Pan PH, Finnegan MB, Sturdivant L, Barnett ML. Comparative antimicrobial activity of an essential oil and an amine fluoride/stannous fluoride mouthrinse in vitro. J Clin Periodontol. 1999;26(7):474-476. 7. Fine DH, Furgang D, Barnett ML, et al. Effect of an essential oil-containing antiseptic mouthrinse on plaque and salivary Streptococcus mutans levels. J Clin Periodontol. 2000;27(3):157-161. 8. Pan PC, Harper S, Ricci-Nittel D, Lux R, Shi W. In-vitro evidence for efficacy of antimicrobial mouthrinses. J Dent. 2010;38(suppl 1):S16-S20. 9. Fine DH, Furgang D, Lieb R, Korik I, Vincent JW, Barnett ML. Effects of sublethal exposure to an antiseptic mouthrinse representative plaque bacteria. J Clin Periodontol. 1996;23(S):444-451. 10. DePaola LG. Safety and efficacy of antimicrobial mouthrinses in clinical practice. J Dent Hygiene. 2007 (special suppl);13:13-25. 11. Meiller TF, Kelley JI, et al. In vitro studies of the efficacy of antimicrobials against fungi. Oral Surg Oral Med Oral Pathol Oral Radiol Endod. 2001;91:663-670.

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