Journal
ADVANCED MATERIALS
Volume 30, Issue 46, Pages -Publisher
WILEY-V C H VERLAG GMBH
DOI: 10.1002/adma.201804153
Keywords
adhesion energy; antibiotics; biofilms; fracture; rheology
Categories
Funding
- Howard Hughes Medical Institute
- NSF [MCB-1713731, MCB-1344191]
- Max Planck Society-Alexander von Humboldt Foundation
- Burroughs Wellcome Fund
- Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation [GBMF2550.06]
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Biofilms, surface-attached communities of bacterial cells, are a concern in health and in industrial operations because of persistent infections, clogging of flows, and surface fouling. Extracellular matrices provide mechanical protection to biofilm-dwelling cells as well as protection from chemical insults, including antibiotics. Understanding how biofilm material properties arise from constituent matrix components and how these properties change in different environments is crucial for designing biofilm removal strategies. Here, using rheological characterization and surface analyses of Vibrio cholerae biofilms, it is discovered how extracellular polysaccharides, proteins, and cells function together to define biofilm mechanical and interfacial properties. Using insight gained from our measurements, a facile capillary peeling technology is developed to remove biofilms from surfaces or to transfer intact biofilms from one surface to another. It is shown that the findings are applicable to other biofilm-forming bacterial species and to multiple surfaces. Thus, the technology and the understanding that have been developed could potentially be employed to characterize and/or treat biofilm-related infections and industrial biofouling problems.
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