Formation, Development, and Cross-Species Interactions in Biofilms

Abstract

Biofilms, which are essential vectors of bacterial survival, protect microbes from antibiotics and host immune attack and are one of the leading causes that maintain drug-resistant chronic infections. In nature, compared with monomicrobial biofilms, polymicrobial biofilms composed of multispecies bacteria predominate, which means that it is significant to explore the interactions between microorganisms from different kingdoms, species, and strains. Cross-microbial interactions exist during biofilm development, either synergistically or antagonistically. Although research into cross-species biofilms remains at an early stage, in this review, the important mechanisms that are involved in biofilm formation are delineated. Then, recent studies that investigated cross-species cooperation or synergy, competition or antagonism in biofilms, and various components that mediate those interactions will be elaborated. To determine approaches that minimize the harmful effects of biofilms, it is important to understand the interactions between microbial species. The knowledge gained from these investigations has the potential to guide studies into microbial sociality in natural settings and to help in the design of new medicines and therapies to treat bacterial infections.

Targeting the Holy Triangle of Quorum Sensing, Biofilm Formation, and Antibiotic Resistance in Pathogenic Bacteria

“…Biofilm formation is characterized by four major stages that act in a cyclic mode [2,8,[496][497][498]: (1) an initial reversible attachment to a biotic or abiotic surface, followed by an irreversible binding to the surface; (2) maturation stage where replication of the bacteria forms a microcolony, accompanied by the production of EPS and other components of the extracellular matrix surrounding the microcolony; (3) adhesion of other bacteria to the glycocalyx composed of EPS and other components, thus increasing the complexity and depth of the biofilm that can reach multiple layers of more than 100 µm; (4) release of some of the bacteria from the mature biofilm, leading to the dispersion of the bacteria to other locations thus generating infection with potentially new biofilm formation. During biofilm maturation, canals are formed in the biofilm structure.…”

Antibiotic Resistance in the Drinking Water: Old and New Strategies to Remove Antibiotics, Resistant Bacteria, and Resistance Genes

“…Horizontal gene transfer of ARGs is probably the major factor contributing to the occurrence of new bacterial resistant strains [26]. The horizontal gene transfer mechanisms involve transformation, conjugation, transduction, membrane vesicle fusion, and gene transfer agents (Figure 1B) [19,27].…”

“…Transduction is a process mediated by bacteriophages. Bacteriophages infect bacteria, and after bacteria lysis, they can incorporate DNA fragments that will be transferred to another bacteria genome [27,28]. Bacterial membrane vesicles carry lipids, proteins, and DNA that can be released to the external environment under stressful conditions, fuse, and transform other bacteria [29].…”

Peptidomimetics as Potential Anti-Virulence Drugs Against Resistant Bacterial Pathogens

“…Biofilms are a form of bacterial growth that ensures pathogens’ persistence and dissemination ( Lebeaux et al, 2014 ; Batoni et al, 2016 ; Sahoo et al, 2021 ). Biofilms are produced by a wide diversity of microbes growing in monomicrobial or polymicrobial communities enclosed in a protective matrix ( Preda and Săndulescu, 2019 ; Luo et al, 2021 ). Biofilm development is a regulated process, in which second-messengers and quorum-sensing regulatory systems are involved ( Mahto et al, 2021 ).…”