Role of extracellular polymeric substances in polymicrobial biofilm infections of Staphylococcus epidermidis and Candida albicans modelled in the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans
Date
2017Journal
Pathogens and DiseasePublisher
Oxford University PressType
Article
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Biofilms are formed by communities of microorganisms living in a self-produced extracellular polymeric matrix attached to a surface. When living in a biofilm microorganisms change phenotype and thus are less susceptible to antibiotic treatment and biofilm infections can become severe. The aim of this study was to determine if the presence of multikingdom microorganisms alters the virulence of a biofilm infection in a host organism. The coexistence of Candida albicans and Staphylococcus epidermidis in biofilm was examined in the nematode model Caenorhabditis elegans. It was evaluated if the hyphal form of C. albicans and extracellular polymeric substances (EPS) formed by S. epidermidis increases biofilm virulence. Survival assays were performed, where C. elegans nematodes were exposed to S. epidermidis and C. albicans. Single inoculation assays showed a decreased survival rate after 2 days following exposure, while dual inoculation assays showed that a clinical S. epidermidis strain together with C. albicans significantly increased the virulence and decreased nematode survival. EPS seem to interfere with the bacterial attachment to hyphae, since the EPS overproducing S. epidermidis strain was most virulent. The clinical S. epidermidis paired with C. albicans led to a severe infection in the nematodes resulting in reduced survival.Sponsors
This work was funded through the National Science Foundation's STEP Program, the Successful Engineering Education and Development Support (SEEDS) Program, where fellowships during 2016-17 were awarded to Jillian Holt. We also want to thank The Caenorhabditis Genetics Center (CGC) that is supported by the National Institutes of Health - Office of Research Infrastructure Programs ( P40 OD010440).Identifier to cite or link to this item
https://www.scopus.com/inward/record.uri?eid=2-s2.0-85028657036&doi=10.1093%2ffemspd%2fftx052&partnerID=40&md5=9d6627c578b3645ad16b45e514216968; http://hdl.handle.net/10713/11288ae974a485f413a2113503eed53cd6c53
10.1093/femspd/ftx052
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