Carbohydrate Coating Reduces Adhesion of Biofilm-Forming Bacillus subtilis to Gold Surfaces

Abstract

The growth of bacterial biofilms in pipes and food tanks causes severe problems in industry. Biofilms growing on medical implants or catheters are of great concern, as they can cause serious infections and decrease the functionality of the medical device. The prevention of bacterial adhesion-the first step in colonization and biofilm formation-is therefore very important. Current research comprises alterations in surface properties, the prevention of adhesin biosynthesis, inhibition with receptor analogs, or the development of anti-adhesive vaccines. We present a new approach that allows us to study bacterial adhesion with high sensitivity in real-time while testing several different surfaces in parallel. Using the cantilever-array technique we demonstrate that coating of gold surfaces with mono-or disaccharides results in a reduction of the bacterial adhesion of the biofilmforming bacterium Bacillus subtilis NCIB 3610 to these gold surfaces. This reduction in bacterial adhesion is independent of the studied carbohydrate. Using several mutant strains, we investigate the underlying molecular interactions, and our results suggest that adhesion to gold surfaces is mediated by thiol groups present in proteins of the bacterial cell membrane or biofilm matrix proteins expressed at low levels by the wild-type strain. Furthermore, our data indicate that the adhesion of B. subtilis NCIB 3610 to carbohydrate-coated gold surfaces is facilitated by interactions between carbohydrates installed on the cantilever gold surface and an exopolysaccharide expressed by this strain. Understanding general and specific contributions of molecular interactions mediating bacterial adhesion will enable its prevention in the future.

Biocidal Properties of a Glycosylated Surface: Sophorolipids on Au(111)

“…Until now, only two forms of antimicrobial actions of carbohydrate derivatives have been described: 1) a biocidal action via cellular lysis promoted by glycolipids in solution 13 ; 2) an antiadhesive effect, commonly observed for polysaccharides and glycolipids either immobilized on a substrate (glycoarray) or free in solution 13,[16][17][18][19][20] . Even though the mechanisms of action are still largely debated, the biocidal action is likely due to the amphiphilic nature of the glycolipids, which penetrate into the plasma membrane, causing lysis and possible leakage of cytoplasm material [21][22][23] .…”

Direct Comparison of Physical Properties of Bacillus subtilis NCIB 3610 and B-1 Biofilms

“…The majority of recent studies focuses on the analysis of the mechanical properties of wild-type biofilms (25)(26)(27). These studies comprise work on biofilm elasticity (16,17,28,29), biofilm erosion stability (30), and adhesion properties (31)(32)(33), as well as theoretical investigations of mechanical biofilm characteristics (34,35). Biofilm formation by the bacterium Bacillus subtilis has been studied intensively (36)(37)(38)(39)(40)(41)(42)(43), but information about the mechanical properties of these biofilm-forming bacteria is just emerging (24,30,44).…”

Incorporation of brominated furanone into Nafion polymer enhanced anti-biofilm efficacy

“…Activated sludge from the Qinghe Municipal Wastewater Treatment Plant (Beijing, China) was the source of the mixed culture. P. aeruginosa, E. coli and B. subtilis were chosen for study here because they are typical pathogens in infections (Zodrow et al, 2012) and widely exist in human body (Islam et al, 2014) and drainage system (Schwering et al, 2013) and easily form biofilms on surfaces (Kesel et al, 2014). P. aeruginosa and E. coli are Gramnegative bacteria and B. subtilis is a Gram-positive bacterium.…”