New Biofilm Study Opens Potential For Defeating Antibiotic-resistance Organisms

What's New Monday: Biofilm Research From Penn State Collaboration

Biofilms are complex microbial communities that adhere to surfaces encased in a self-produced extracellular matrix. The environment of biofilms is dynamic and can vary widely depending on the specific microbial composition, the surface they colonize, and the surrounding conditions.

Today’s article is from a recent paper issued in early December 2023 about the possible connection between microbial biofilms and “implications for a wide variety of applications, from fighting disease to engineering new types of living active materials.” (Penn State, 2023) Biofilms can be found anywhere microbes are found, which is everywhere. The microbes inside the biofilm affect the materials coming out of the biofilm. When the microbes are beneficial, they will secrete various beneficial metabolites. “However, when the associated microbes are pathogenic, this ability to aggregate into biofilms becomes a significant virulence factor.” (Prinzi and Rhode, 2023)

"We found that biofilms take advantage of growth-induced stresses to shape their environment and create a nematic structure. This takes us much closer to controlling the biofilm's morphology, packing, and ordering." (Penn State, 2023)

According to the American Society for Microbiology (ASM), biofilms are, in fact, the primary cause of chronic antibiotic-resistant infections. The ASM states in a recent article by Prinzi and Rhode, “In fact, the vast majority of human infections are actually biofilm-mediated.” (Prinzi and Rhode, 2023) The Penn State group is pondering altering biofilms to contain beneficial (probiotic) microbes to secrete their beneficial metabolites to exert positive effects in the areas surrounding the biofilms. This would have huge implications virtually anywhere in fields where microbes are concerned.

Maybe this will be a new wave in probiotic research…

Source

Penn State. (2023, December 7). Growing biofilms actively alter host environment. ScienceDaily. Retrieved December 16, 2023, from www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2023/12/231207161400.htm

Prinzi, A. and Rohde, R. (2023, March 6) The Role of Bacterial Biofilms in Antimicrobial Resistance. https://asm.org/articles/2023/march/the-role-of-bacterial-biofilms-in-antimicrobial-re