Antibiofilm assay for antimicrobial peptides combating the sulfate‐reducing bacteria Desulfovibrio vulgaris

Abstract

In medical, environmental, and industrial processes, the accumulation of bacteria in biofilms can disrupt many processes. Antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) are receiving increasing attention in the development of new substances to avoid or reduce biofilm formation. There is a lack of parallel testing of the effect against biofilms in this area, as well as in the testing of other antibiofilm agents. In this paper, a high‐throughput screening was developed for the analysis of the antibiofilm activity of AMPs, differentiated into inhibition and removal of a biofilm. The sulfate‐reducing bacterium Desulfovibrio vulgaris was used as a model organism. D. vulgaris represents an undesirable bacterium, which is considered one of the major triggers of microbiologically influenced corrosion. The application of a 96‐well plate and steel rivets as a growth surface realizes real‐life conditions and at the same time establishes a flexible, simple, fast, and cost‐effective assay. All peptides tested in this study demonstrated antibiofilm activity, although these peptides should be individually selected depending on the addressed aim. For biofilm inhibition, the peptide DASamP1 is the most suitable, with a sustained effect for up to 21 days. The preferred peptides for biofilm removal are S6L3‐33, in regard to bacteria reduction, and Bactenecin, regarding total biomass reduction.

A Comprehensive Review of Recent Research into the Effects of Antimicrobial Peptides on Biofilms—January 2020 to September 2023

“…A significant reduction in bacterial load and a concomitant decrease in pro-inflammatory cytokines IL-1β, IL-6, and TNF-α was observed. The bacterium Desulfovibrio vulgaris and a corrosion biofilm model (using steel rivets as a surface for bacterial growth in a 96-well format) was developed by Stillger et al, who showed that AMPs S6L3-33 (bacterial reduction), bactenecin (total biomass reduction), and DASamP1 (biofilm inhibition up to 21 days) were the most useful anti-biocorrosive AMPs of those tested [137]. Finally, AMPs may be important in protecting foodstuffs from spoilage bacteria.…”