The Effects Of Genetics And Environment On Biofilm Growth

Biofilms play a crucial role in the persistence of lung infections in CF patients due to the protective extracellular matrix that is formed by the bacterial community (5). This barrier limits the penetration of antibiotics and results in varying nutrient gradients, allowing for a diverse range of bacteria (5). Bacteria inside this biofilm are able to sense the presence of other cells, and alter their properties accordingly to suit the environment. This is particularly interesting as the bacterial communities within a biofilm may compete with each other for dominance in the biofilm (6). Therefore, bacterial competition may impact the treatment and actions needed to treat biofilms in the lungs of CF patients

The bacterium is capable of producing biofilms that allow microorganisms to stick to solid surfaces forming an attachment, which is enclosed by a slime layer ("Staphylococcus epidermis"). Biofilms protect pathogens from being destroyed by disinfectants inside human bodies ("Staphylococcus epidermis"). In other words, biofilms aid pathogens in causing diseases by releasing microbial products ("Staphylococcus

Pseudomonas aeruginosa is a key opportunistic pathogen characterized by high-level antibiotic resistance and biofilm formation (1).Biofilm is a structured community of bacterial cells enclosed in a self-produced polymeric matrix adherent to an inert or living surface. Biofilmproducing organisms are more antimicrobial resistant than organisms without biofilm. In some extreme cases, the concentrations of antimicrobials required to kill biofilm positive organisms can be three- to four-fold higher than for biofilm negative bacteria, depending on the species and drug combination (2). Biofilms have great importance for public health as they are the main cause of nosocomial infections, especially implant-based and chronic infections (3). Antibiotic resistance in biofilms is due to a combination of many factors that act together to result in a level of resistance that is much higher than that of planktonic bacteria (4,5).

Bacteria are single-celled microorganisms that have been around on planet Earth for over 3.5 billion years and are found everywhere and anywhere you touch. Some bacteria can be healthy to the human body while some can “attack” and cause infectious diseases to be spread. Most bacteria located on surfaces are the cause or starting point for the majority of common illnesses. For example the flu, cold, gastrointestinal disease (diarrhea, stomach flu, salmonella infection), streptococcal infections, and meningitis. The most common place to spread germs can be in schools, offices, and other public places where multiple people have contact with objects. So, that is why it is important to decrease amounts of bacteria on surfaces to prevent the spread

Thus we sought to determine whether those bacteria that produced coaggregation were associated with cohesion in contact lens case biofilm formation. Cohesion can also occur when a pioneer species modifies the substratum to encourage adhesion of successor species. As, Staphylococcus spp are the most commonly isolated from the lens cases, could be considered as pioneer species, but 10% of the lens cases also showed the contamination of Gram negative bacteria. Based on recent in vivo data we found Staphylococcus spp often isolated with Acinetobacter spp. There is other literature which also showed the isolation of P. aeruginosa and S. marcescens from lens cases. The present study showed cohesion between Staphylococcus spp and Acinetobacter spp/ Micrococcus spp, where Staphylococcus spp can be considered as pioneer species and Acinetobacter and Micrococcus as successor. Whist this study did not investigate the facilitating factor for the cohesion, will be worth to consider in future study. The next step will be to see whether the elimination of Micrococcus and Acinetobacter contamination from lens cases will reduce the adhesion of Staphylococcus spp which may reduce the overall rate of contact lens case

In the current paper, the investigators explored the formation of large biofilm-like clusters (agglomerates) of bacteria in synovial fluids (SF) of patients. Their primary goal was to elucidate the molecular basis for agglomeration by determining whether the extreme phenotype reflects altered expression of distinct bacterial factors.

Pseudomonas aeruginosa is a gram negative, rod-shaped bacteria, almost all strains of P. aeruginosa are motile (single polar flagella). The bacteria is capable of adapting to and therefore thriving in many different ecological environments (from water and soil to plant and animals) it also can utilize a variety of organic compounds as food sources, giving it the ability to colonize in places where nutrients are limited. It can cause a range of infections from pneumonia to the most serious cystic fibrosis. P. aeruginosa can form a biofilm that allows the bacteria to form a resistance to antibiotics. To this day there are conferences, websites, and microbiologists committed to the research and discovery of P. aeruginosa in the fight to discover and learn more about the bacteria and ways to fight its biofilm.

Whether we like it or not bacteria is everywhere, it can be good and bad, on every surface we touch and even within our bodies. Bacteria, usually as a single celled microorganism, is almost harmless on its own as it can be engulfed by phagocytes and even destroyed by antibiotics. However, bacteria can group together and create something called a biofilm, which can be more detrimental to the health of humans. Biofilms are defined as a complex structure adhering to surfaces that are regularly in contact with water, consisting of colonies of bacteria and usually other microorganisms like yeasts and fungi. (Dictionary, 2002) What they are in not too complex words are microorganisms that stick together to become bigger and stronger cultures. The initial bacteria that attach themselves to surfaces do so by using weak, reversible, short-range electrostatic forces. These forces are called the van der Waals forces. If the bacteria is not disturbed and further grows, at this stage it begins to release a sticky polysaccharide, called extracellular polymeric substance (EPS) that allows the bacteria to strengthen and promote the arrival of pathogens. These

What is the purpose of microbes forming surface-attached communities? What benefits do such arrangements provide to the microbes?

The formation of biofilms is not random but can be predicted by the process above. The biofilms become attached to surfaces because of gravity, or bacteria that have a negative charge. The bacteria senses and goes to the highest concentration of nutrients.

In microbiology and health, we learn a lot about bacteria and how they grow and affect us. One thing we have started to talk about are biofilms. Biofilms can be any group of microorganisms that live in communities. Biofilms are a slime layer known to cover the bacteria that can attach to the surface, and they shield against antibiotics. The slime layer can be made up of extracellular polymeric substances. Biofilms can grow on many different surfaces like aqueous environments. They typically attached to each other than to the surface and can form thin or thick layers.

The formation of hydrated EPS layer surrounding a microorganism will provide protection against desiccation and predation (Suresh Kumar et al., 2007). Furthermore, EPS plays a principal role in cell aggregates formation and initiation of flocculation as well as biofilms. The production of EPS not only involves in anchoring of biofilms to hydrophobic surfaces but also accumulation of recalcitrant PAHs by sorption to exopolymer (Johnsen et al., 2005). This properties are significant to in removal of water pollutant (Singh et al., 2006) and selective plugging in MEOR (Sen, 2008). As a key constituent in cell floc and biofilm formation, EPS helps to facilitate the mechanism of cell adhesion to surfaces and other organisms, as well as uptake of nutrients (Laspidou and Rittmann, 2002). The EPS matrix in biofilm displays as a medium for biochemical interaction among cells in microbial aggregates (Laspidou and Rittmann, 2002). Besides that, EPS can also function as emulsifier and surfactants that are

Treatment of the disease is currently based on antimicrobial susceptibility tests according to Clinical and Laboratory Standards Institute (CLSI) [5]. Standard therapy designed for bacteria isolates at planktonic state continues to be applied. However, the pathogenic profile and the antimicrobial resistance are totally different from biofilms, causing reduced cure rates. Furthermore, the ability to form biofilm is important both from the pathogenicity to the animal as for the manufacturing milk industries, where the pathogen can adhere to abiotic food processing structures and persist in adverse conditions through biofilms. The development and establishment of the biofilm depend on the ability of pathogen to adhere to bovine mammary epithelial cells. S. dysgalactiae have many virulence factors including the capacity to bind to the host's cells surface by a protein called GFBA, which is involved in adherence and internalization, by its linking to lactoferrin [6]. It was demonstrated that the S. dysgalactiae isolated from mastitis cows was able to produce biofilm [7]. Economic negative effects in the milk production around the world and the possible involvement of biofilms in S. dysgalactiae mastitis infections, address the research to the study of factors that may contribute for the biofilm production in order to establish more effective treatment strategies. Different studies report that environmental conditions influence the capacity to form biofilm in

Excessive and indiscriminate usage of antibiotics has led to the emergence of multiple drug resistant (MDR) bacterial strains. The need for alternative approaches to combat these MDR strains stem from the fact that 16 million people die annually due to infectious diseases caused by them (Bjarnsholt. et al., 2005 and Rasmussen. et al., 2005). It has been repeatedly observed that bacteria within these specialised structures are around 1000 times more resistant to antibiotics than their free-living counterparts (Martinez and Baquero, 2002). Bacterial behaviour within biofilms is regulated by a process named quorum sensing (QS), where bacteria release chemical signals and express virulence genes in a cell density dependent manner (Ganin et al.

A biofilm is a thin, slimy film of bacteria that adheres to a surface which can be living or non-living, and occur in natural, industrial, and medical contexts. Planktonic