Introduction
The most abundant type of cell is bacteria. It is a single celled organism that rapidly multiplies and lives on almost all aspects of the environment. Most bacteria were discovered and studied in laboratories during the 20th century. However, more recently scientists have been able to study bacteria in its natural environment due to advancements in technology, such as microscopes. With advancements in equipment, along with scientists, it is now known that most bacteria live in complex communities called biofilm. The study of biofilms has grown exponentially in recent years due to increased awareness of its impact on natural and manufactured systems, as well as human health. It is reported that biofilm cost the U.S. billions of dollars every year in product contamination, energy losses, equipment damage and medical infections (Montana State University CBE, retrieved 2016). To understand the important of biofilm it is necessary to understand that it is a form of bacteria that is densely packed in communities of microbial cells that grow together and adhere to a moist surface. These complex communities of bacteria contain many strains and include a multistep formation that is vital. Oral biofilms contain communities of disease causing bacteria and if left uncontrolled can be related to periodontal disease. For the dental hygienist understanding what biofilm is will be just as important as understanding its formation.
Discovering and Understanding Biofilm
Complex
Blood and saliva borne bacteria are mainly the reason for some serious infectious diseases (Szymanska, 2005, Martin et al., 2009). For example, Hepatitis B virus (HBV) is a known virus that may be contracted in dental clinics. Investigation of the presence of the virus in the oral fluids of hepatitis B carriers showed that %70 of their sample were infectious (Molinari & Harte, 2010). The greatest concentration of the HBV is under the gingival sulucs where this area is inflamed routinely and allows blood to mix
You may use the lab manual, pre-lab lectures, and credible internet resources, however you may not use your cell bio lab classmates as a resource. You will most likely see this material again on the Final and I highly encourage you to work individually and seek help from myself or your TA. Plagiarism will result in an automatic zero.
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).
It is very difficult to treat bacterial biofilm infection. Antibiotic treatment by itself is not enough to destroy biofilm infections adequately. Overall, the approaches to combat biofilms can be categorized into two groups depending if the infection involves a foreign body or not. If the biofilm infection does not involving a foreign body (such as indwelling implants), continuing treatment using high doses of combination of several antibiotics with different mode of action toward the bacteria is used to combat the infection. On the other hand, if a foreign body is involved in the biofilm infection, extraction of the implant is needed for positive result. In some cases, only physical reduction of the biofilm is possible (using mechanical methods)
The human lips had the most amount of bacteria at 15% (Table 1 & Figure 1). The toilet seat had 8% of bacteria (Table 1 & Figure 3). The soil outside QCC had only 5% bacteria (Table 1 & Figure 2). The toilet seat had two different kinds of bacteria on it (Table 1 & Figure 3). Fungus was only present in the sample collected from the soil outside QCC (Table 2 & Figure 3).
In the United States, the fourth most leading cause of death are hospital-acquired infections. Furthermore, it is estimated that greater than 65 percent of all bacterial infections are associated with biofilms. A greater understanding of biofilms is essential if we are to find effective methods to combat their formation in order to promote public health. Unfortunately, with bacteria in space behaving widely different than on Earth, this can cause a huge problem when it comes to health in space. First of all, biofilms could contaminate and bio-deteriorate the space habitats, the health of the crew, and the function of waste recycling or food production systems in extremely different ways then handled before on Earth. All of these issues would
Each and every human mouth contains microorganisms, good and bad. It has been concluded that there are up to 1,000 variety of microorganisms residing in the oral cavity. Many of these bacteria are harmless to humans and are natural to the body. However, there are several that can cause decay and chronic infection in the oral cavity, which are also known as gram negative bacteria (Gehrig & Willmann, 2016). Biofilm, also known as plaque that forms on teeth, contains an organized matrix of microorganisms, which consists of these gram negative bacteria that can cause periodontitis. There are several types of biofilm in nature, but plaque in the oral cavity can be very destructive to a human’s periodontium and can place other organ systems at risk for harm. Bacteria reproduce very quickly and form huge colonies quickly as well (Gehrig & Willmann, 2016). It is important for women, who are pregnant or whom are trying to become pregnant, to have a thorough periodontal exam,
Biofilms were cultivated in micro titre plates with and without different concentrations of Medihoney and the effects on the biofilms were monitored.
These organisms are attracted to solid, moistened surfaces. Biofilm contains a protective polysaccharide insoluble slime layer which defends it from dying. The majority of microorganisms are from main source water. For example, water coming from tap, distilled, or sterile. These waterborne pathogens, such as, Legionella, Non-tuberculosis mycobacteria (NTM), and Pseudomonas aeruginosa have been linked with hospital contaminations as well as immunocompromised patients (Fotedar & Ganju, 2014). Dental units and equipment incorporate water systems to deliver water which acts as a coolant and also maintain moisture on teeth during dental procedure treatments. Narrow bore plastic or polyurethane tubing, stated as dental unit waterlines (DUWL), is the means by way water is supplied to these instruments. This tubing is approximately 1/16th inch or 2 millimeters in diameter. Water from city sources travels through roughly a 10-inch-wide channel, then to the dental office ½ inch plumbing, and lastly to the dental unit water lines of just 1/16th inch (Slonczewski, 2012). As the water approaches the DUWL, the flow greatly decreases. The amount of water stagnation because of this tight constriction as well as offices being closed over weekends encourages microbial
Bacterial urinary tract infections represent the most common type of nosocomial infections. Often, the ability of bacteria to both establish and maintain these infections are directly related to biofilm formation on indwelling devices or within the urinary tract itself (30). Enterococci (especially E. faecalis) are one of the main causative agents of urinary tract infection and Catheter-associated urinary tract infections (CAUTIs) besides gram-negative pathogens (31, 32). In these infections Biofilm provides a favorable milieu for microbial survival within the host as the organisms are shielded from the host immune response, as well as antibiotics and antimicrobial agents (33, 34). Several studies conducted to introduce main virulence genes of enterococci that are associated with biofilm formation in these bacteria (11, 13,-17), but virulence mechanism and related genes for biofilm formation are not well understood (35). In this study we investigated biofilm formation of clinical enterococci isolates isolated from Urinary tract infections. These strains were characterized for presence of adhesions and secretory virulence factors. Isolates had diverse presence of virulence from lack to highest amount of virulence genes. Several previous studies investigated relation of virulence genes and biofilm formation, especially presence of esp and gel. Enterococci esp has been implicated as a contributing factor in colonization and persistence of infection within the urinary tract
SDF was placed and then evaluated to observe the effect on the biofilm. At the 7th day the colony forming units (CFU) of the bacteria had dropped to low values <1 for all species. Therefore, the application of SDF was shown to inhibit the cariogenic biofilm formation. They further found that repeated application of SDF will “enhance the effectiveness in caries arrest”. (Mei, Li, Chin-Man Lo, & Samaranayake, 2013) Some recommend a twice per year application will provide a better arrest rate than once a year. They also state that the darkening of the lesion noted at the follow up indicates success in caries
Biofilms are hard to treat for many reasons. The main reason is because they are highly resistant to antibiotics. This is because the outer cells protect the inner cells from the antibiotic. Therefore, a long-term treatment of antibiotics is required to help the biofilm related infection. Living in groups, give bacteria properties they didn't have when living alone. Another reason they're hard to treat is because they are undefeatable by the body's natural immune defense system. Biofilms avoid chemical disinfection in two different ways. The first is that a gel-like polysaccharide layer provides a physical barrier against any outside agent, biological or chemical. The second is that even if a biocidal agent is introduced in a large enough quantity to eliminate the living bacteria, then
Microorganisms, or microbes, and single-celled organisms exist within all niche ecosystems found without the world. They have been found to cluster together, living in highly complex assemblages instead of existing on their own, interacting on many different levels with symbiotic relationships being formed. Biofilm is one such example of this assemblage behaviour. Through synergistic symbiotic relations, microbes congregate to form a matrix-enclosed microbial accretion which can adhere to either a biological or nonbiological surface (Hall-Stoodley, Costerton, & Stoodley, 2004). Biofilms can be found throughout a diverse range of different environments and first appear in the fossil record very early at approximately 3.25 billion years ago, being formed from highly varied ranges of both prokaryotic archaea and bacteria (Hall-Stoodley, Costerton, & Stoodley, 2004). Even though there are many different types, the main focuses are on both infectious biofilms and built environment biofilms, as these are the most directly impacting. Multiple processes are present such as syntrophy, signalling and coordination with structure and emergent order; make these assemblages incredibly structurally tough and dynamic. The stages of development, from motility to fixing a position, expansion and finally dispersal, display numerous different signalling and regulation pathways, making them highly complex and one of the main factors that sparked recent research.