Bacterial biofilms: from the natural environment to infectious diseases
- PMID: 15040259
- DOI: 10.1038/nrmicro821
Bacterial biofilms: from the natural environment to infectious diseases
Abstract
Biofilms--matrix-enclosed microbial accretions that adhere to biological or non-biological surfaces--represent a significant and incompletely understood mode of growth for bacteria. Biofilm formation appears early in the fossil record (approximately 3.25 billion years ago) and is common throughout a diverse range of organisms in both the Archaea and Bacteria lineages, including the 'living fossils' in the most deeply dividing branches of the phylogenetic tree. It is evident that biofilm formation is an ancient and integral component of the prokaryotic life cycle, and is a key factor for survival in diverse environments. Recent advances show that biofilms are structurally complex, dynamic systems with attributes of both primordial multicellular organisms and multifaceted ecosystems. Biofilm formation represents a protected mode of growth that allows cells to survive in hostile environments and also disperse to colonize new niches. The implications of these survival and propagative mechanisms in the context of both the natural environment and infectious diseases are discussed in this review.
Similar articles
-
An integrated view of biofilm formation in rhizobia.FEMS Microbiol Lett. 2010 Mar;304(1):1-11. doi: 10.1111/j.1574-6968.2009.01840.x. Epub 2009 Oct 30. FEMS Microbiol Lett. 2010. PMID: 19930462 Review.
-
Bacterial biofilms within the clinical setting: what healthcare professionals should know.J Hosp Infect. 2006 Dec;64(4):313-25. doi: 10.1016/j.jhin.2006.06.028. J Hosp Infect. 2006. PMID: 17046102 Review.
-
[Biofilms as a mode of existence of bacteria in external environment and host body: the phenomenon, genetic control, and regulation systems of development].Genetika. 2004 Nov;40(11):1445-56. Genetika. 2004. PMID: 15612563 Review. Russian.
-
[Biofilm, foreign bodies and chronic infections].Ugeskr Laeger. 1994 Oct 10;156(41):5998-6005. Ugeskr Laeger. 1994. PMID: 7992437 Review. Danish.
-
Survival strategies of infectious biofilms.Trends Microbiol. 2005 Jan;13(1):34-40. doi: 10.1016/j.tim.2004.11.010. Trends Microbiol. 2005. PMID: 15639630 Review.
Cited by
-
The mechanical world of bacteria.Cell. 2015 May 21;161(5):988-997. doi: 10.1016/j.cell.2015.05.005. Cell. 2015. PMID: 26000479 Free PMC article. Review.
-
Population pharmacokinetics of daptomycin in adult patients undergoing continuous renal replacement therapy.Br J Clin Pharmacol. 2017 Mar;83(3):498-509. doi: 10.1111/bcp.13131. Epub 2016 Oct 28. Br J Clin Pharmacol. 2017. PMID: 27628437 Free PMC article.
-
Adhesive fiber stratification in uropathogenic Escherichia coli biofilms unveils oxygen-mediated control of type 1 pili.PLoS Pathog. 2015 Mar 4;11(3):e1004697. doi: 10.1371/journal.ppat.1004697. eCollection 2015 Mar. PLoS Pathog. 2015. PMID: 25738819 Free PMC article.
-
Sonication of intramedullary nails: clinically-related infection and contamination.Open Orthop J. 2012;6:255-60. doi: 10.2174/1874325001206010255. Epub 2012 Jun 29. Open Orthop J. 2012. PMID: 22848337 Free PMC article.
-
Extracellular matrix-associated proteins form an integral and dynamic system during Pseudomonas aeruginosa biofilm development.Front Cell Infect Microbiol. 2015 May 13;5:40. doi: 10.3389/fcimb.2015.00040. eCollection 2015. Front Cell Infect Microbiol. 2015. PMID: 26029669 Free PMC article.
Publication types
MeSH terms
LinkOut - more resources
Full Text Sources
Other Literature Sources
