The effects of several microbial residents of human oral cavities on the attachment of Actinomyces viscosus T14V to tooth surfaces were assessed by using the saliva-coated hydroxyapatite (sHA) in vitro system. Attachment to sHA by A. viscosus T14V was not inhibited in the presence of Streptococcus mutans GS5, either in the presence or absence of sucrose. Precoating sHA beads with S. mutans in the presence of sucrose also did not retard strain T14V attachment. However, the presence of Streptococcus sanguis M5 during strain T14V attachment markedly inhibited the interaction of A. viscosus T14V with sHA, whereas another S. sanguis strain, strain G9B, produced relatively weak inhibition. The inhibitory effect of S. sanguis M5 appeared to result from the direct interaction of this organism with A. viscosus T14V. Conversely, the presence of strain T14V markedly increased the attachment of S. sanguis M5 to sHA while partially inhibiting the attachment of S. sanguis G9B. Moreover, sHA beads precoated with A. viscosus T14V bound much higher levels of S. sanguis M5 relative to uncoated sHA, whereas S. sanguis G9B attachment was only weakly inhibited. It was also observed that sHA beads precoated with either S. sanguis M5 or G9B inhibited subsequent attachment by strain T14V. These results suggest the possibility that the attachment sites for both S. sanguis strains partially overlap those for A. viscosus T14V. Streptococcus mitis weakly inhibited attachment of strain T14V to sHA, and both Streptococcus salivarius and Lactobacillus casei had little effect on attachment. In addition, both a radioisotope attachment assay and fluorescent microscopy demonstrated no significant attachment of A. viscosus T14V to human epithelial cells.