Biofilms

You and Your Dentist During the COVID-19 Pandemic The American Dental Association (ADA) has issued a statement advising dentists to postpone non-emergency dental procedures through April 30. Many dentists have put this in place and notified patients that they would be rescheduled for non-emergency procedures when normal operations resume. The following guide was published to…

PERIODONTITIS – A CLASSIC BIOFILM INFECTION Periodontitis, like other biofilm infections, is refractory to antibiotic agents and host defenses because, as explained previously, the causative microbes live in complex communities that persist despite challenges that range from targeted antibiotic agents to phagocytosis–the ingestion of bacteria or other material by phagocytes and amoeboid protozoans. The American…

Biofilm’s Impact Pathogenic biofilms can exist in many different environments: on rocks in streams, in the hulls of ships, on oral surfaces, on infected heart valves, on intravenous catheters, in dental water lines, and inside ducts, to name just a few. The negative impact of biofilms has been well-recognized in the industrial scientific community for…

QUORUM SENSING – MICROBIAL COMMUNICATION Quorum sensing is a communication system within a single bacterial species or between diverse species, which enables the microbes to survive and multiply. It enables the bacteria in a closed system, such as a biofilm, to adapt to local conditions within the community and to avoid the immune response of…

1. Initial Attachment Single free-floating microbe lands on surface. 2. Irreversible Attachment Microbial cells gather and attach. 3. Maturation I Microbial colony grows and divides for biofilm formation. 4. Maturation II Biofilm formation. 5. Dispersion Microbes from sections of biofilm disperse and release free-floating microbes for further colonization. MORE ABOUT BIOFILMS Quorum Sensing – Microbial…

What Are Biofilms? A biofilm is a single- or multi-species community of microorganisms residing within a self-produced polymer matrix that attaches to the interface of a surface and a liquid. A biofilm’s effects can be beneficial, neutral, or harmful to us and our environment. Controlling or eliminating negative-impacting biofilms over any significant time span is…