Regulatory network controls microbial biofilm development, with Candida albicans as a representative: from adhesion to dispersal

Abstract

Microorganisms mainly exist in the form of biofilm in nature. Biofilm can contaminate food and drinking water system, as well as cause chronic wound infections, thereby posing a potential threat to public health safety. In the last two decades, researchers have made efforts to investigate the genetic contributors control different stages of biofilm development (adherence, initiation, maturation, and dispersal). As an opportunistic pathogen, C. albicans causes severe superficial or systemic infections with high morbidity and mortality under conditions of immune dysfunction. It has been reported that 80% of C. albicans infections are directly or indirectly associated with biofilm formation on host or abiotic surfaces including indwelling medical devices, resulting in high morbidity and mortality. Significantly, the outcome of C. albicans biofilm development includes enhanced invasion, exacerbated inflammatory responses and intrinsic resistance to antimicrobial chemotherapy. Thus, this review aimed at providing a comprehensive overview of the regulatory network controls microbial biofilm development, with C. albicans as a representative, served as reference for therapeutic targets.

Assessment of Biofilm Formation by Candida albicans Strains Isolated from Hemocultures and Their Role in Pathogenesis in the Zebrafish Model

“…Similarly, the transcription factor b cr1 that governs the adhesion process mediated by als3 [ 34 ], the filamentation mediated by hwp1 [ 37 ], and the development of persister cells in biofilm [ 38 ] was up-regulated at 8 hpi in our study in biofilm strains. The mkc1 gene is expressed during the adhesion phase and is involved in contact-induced invasive filamentation, as well as in the maturation of biofilms [ 8 ]. This gene was up-regulated in biofilm strain at very early (4 hpi) and early (8 hpi) time points and the non-biofilm strain at 4 hpi, suggesting its role in early adhesion and cell proliferation.…”

“…Previous studies reported that approximately 80% of C. albicans infections in humans are directly or indirectly involved with biofilm formation on the host body or abiotic surfaces, including indwelling medical devices, such as vascular catheters, prosthetic heart valves, joint replacements, or dental implants. This biofilm mostly results in high morbidity and mortality [ 7 , 8 ].…”

Natural products from traditional medicine as promising agents targeting at different stages of oral biofilm development

“…Als family, a class of cell wall glycoproteins, regulates cell adhesion and biofilm formation in C. albicans (Xu et al, 2022). Als1 and Als3 proteins play a vital role in adhesion to host endothelial and epithelial cells.…”

“…Farnesol and tyrosol are the major QS signaling molecules found in C. albicans (Davis-Hanna et al, 2008). Farnesol is an autoregulatory molecule that inhibits the yeast phase's transformation to the hypha phase (Xu et al, 2022). Farnesol is also widely distributed in propolis and fruits (Costa et al, 2021).…”

Insight Into the Properties and Immunoregulatory Effect of Extracellular Vesicles Produced by Candida glabrata, Candida parapsilosis, and Candida tropicalis Biofilms

“…Nevertheless, despite some interspecies diversity, generally, the ability to create a biofilm gives pathogenic Candida fungi an advantage in maintaining infection and enhancing virulence potential compared with planktonic cells ( Cavalheiro and Teixeira, 2018 ). The adherence of microbial cells to biotic or abiotic surfaces, their coexistence in the community in high density, and embedding in a composite biofilm-supporting matrix not only might make the biofilm-forming cells different from free-floating ones but also contribute to acquiring novel virulence properties by the complex biofilm structure ( Xu et al., 2022 ). These are mainly related to the increased difficulty in the removal of biofilm-forming pathogens from the inhabited surfaces and to the disturbances in the effective action of antimicrobial drugs ( Ponde et al., 2021 ).…”