News tagged with biofilm
Mighty mesh: Extracellular matrix identified as source of spreading in biofilms
New research at Harvard explains how bacterial biofilms expand to form slimy mats on teeth, pipes, surgical instruments, and crops.
Jan 23, 2012 |
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Disease-causing strains of Fusarium prevalent in plumbing drains
A study examining the prevalence of the fungus Fusarium in bathroom sink drains suggests that plumbing systems may be a common source of human infections.
Dec 21, 2011 |
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Researchers develop new method of cleaning toxins from the oilsands
Alberta's oilsands have water challenges. Oilsands development uses a vast amount of water and even though it's recycled multiple times, the recycling concentrates the toxins and metals leftover from extracting ...
Dec 21, 2011 |
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Bacterial filters reduce stink from big pig factories
Concentrated animal feeding operations (CAFOs) on industrial animal factories can stink up an entire county, due to ammonia, and a smorgasbord of volatile organic compounds (VOCs). Jeppe Lund Nielsen of Aalborg University, ...
Dec 16, 2011 |
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New fluorescent imaging sorts microbiome in human mouth
New fluorescent labeling technology that distinguishes in a single image the population size and spatial distribution of 15 different taxa has uncovered new taxon pairings that indicate unsuspected cooperation -- and standoffishness ...
Dec 07, 2011 |
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Genetic difference in staph offers clues as to why some patients get infections from cardiac implants
New research suggests that some patients develop a potentially deadly blood infection from their implanted cardiac devices because bacterial cells in their bodies have gene mutations that allow them to stick ...
Oct 24, 2011 |
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Research team discovers new conducting properties of bacteria-produced wires
The discovery of a fundamental, previously unknown property of microbial nanowires in the bacterium Geobacter sulfurreducens that allows electron transport across long distances could revolutionize nanotechnology ...
Aug 07, 2011 |
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Bacteria use Batman-like grappling hooks to 'slingshot' on surfaces
Bacteria use various appendages to move across surfaces prior to forming multicellular bacterial biofilms. Some species display a particularly jerky form of movement known as "twitching" motility, which is made possible by ...
Jul 18, 2011 |
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Streptococcus enzyme could compete with toothbrushes, dental floss
(PhysOrg.com) -- Investigators from Japan show in vitro that the bacterium Streptococcus salivarius, a non-biofilm forming, and otherwise harmless inhabitant of the human mouth, actually inhibits the formation of dental biofilms, ...
Apr 03, 2011 |
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Biofilm reorganization: Back to the theoretical drawing board
In a surprising new study, researchers using image-analysis methods similar to those employed in facial-recognition software have made a startling discovery that rules out the two main theories scientists ...
Mar 22, 2011 |
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Biodegradable tooth-binding micelles inhibit Streptococcus mutans biofilm growth
Today, during the 89th General Session & Exhibition of the International Association for Dental Research, held in conjunction with the 40th Annual Meeting of the American Association for Dental Research and the 35th Annual ...
Mar 19, 2011 |
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Choosing your neighbors: Scientists see how microbes relate in space
Like people in cities, microbes often live in complex communities that contain many different microbial types. Also like us, microbes tend to gravitate to and "hang out" with certain other types in their community, ...
Feb 14, 2011 |
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New method attacks bacterial infections on contact lenses
Researchers at National Jewish Health and the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center have discovered a new method to fight bacterial infections associated with contact lenses. The method may also have applications ...
Jan 25, 2011 |
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Bacteria and fungi keep some ancient Australian rock art colors vivid
(PhysOrg.com) -- New studies of 80 Bradshaw rock art works in the Kimberley region of Western Australia have shown their colors have not faded because the artworks are coated with a biofilm of bacteria and ...
Jan 06, 2011 |
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Microbial hair -- it's electric: Specialized bacterial filaments shown to conduct electricity
(PhysOrg.com) -- Some bacteria grow electrical hair that lets them link up in big biological circuits, according to a University of Southern California biophysicist and his collaborators.
Oct 11, 2010 |
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Biofilm
A biofilm is an aggregate of microorganisms in which cells are stuck to each other and/or to a surface. These adherent cells are frequently embedded within a self-produced matrix of extracellular polymeric substance (EPS). Biofilm EPS, which is also refered to as "slime," is a polymeric jumble of DNA, proteins and polysaccharides. Biofilms may form on living or non-living surfaces, and represent a prevalent mode of microbial life in natural, industrial and hospital settings . The cells of a microorganism growing in a biofilm are physiologically distinct from planktonic cells of the same organism, which by contrast, are single-cells that may float or swim in a liquid medium. Microbes form a biofilm in response to many factors, which may include cellular recognition of specific or non-specific attachment sites on a surface, nutritional cues, or in some cases, by exposure of planktonic cells to sub-inhibitory concentrations of antibiotics . When a cell switches to the biofilm mode of growth, it undergoes a phenotypic shift in behavior in which large suites of genes are differentially regulated .
For more information about Biofilm, read the full article at
Wikipedia.
This text uses material from Wikipedia and is available under the GNU Free Documentation License.
