Bacterial biofilms affect many areas of human activity including food processing, transportation, public infrastructure, and most importantly healthcare. This study addresses the prevention of biofilms and shows that the surface charge of an abiotic substrate influences bacterial motility as well as the morphology and physiology of the biofilm. Grafting-from polymerisation was used to create polymer brush surfaces with different characteristics, and the development of Pseudomonas aeruginosa biofilms was followed using confocal microscopy. Interestingly, two types of biofilms developed on these surfaces: mushroom structures with high levels of cyclic diguanylate (c-di-GMP) were found on negatively charged poly (3-sulphopropylmethacrylate) (SPM) and zwitterionic poly (2-(methacryloyloxy)ethyl)dimethyl-3-sulphoproyl) ammonium hydroxide) (MEDSAH), while flat biofilms developed on glass, positively charged poly (2-(methacryloyloxy)-ethyl trimethyl ammonium chloride) (METAC), protein-repellent poly oligo(ethylene glycol methyl ether methacrylate) (POEGMA) and hydrophobic polymethylmethacrylate (PMMA). The results show that of all the surfaces studied, overall the negatively charged polymer brushes were most efficient in reducing bacterial adhesion and biofilm formation. However, the increased level of regulatory c-di-GMP in mushroom structures suggests that bacteria are capable of a quick physiological response when exposed to surfaces with varying physicochemical characteristics enabling some bacterial colonization also on negatively charged surfaces.

Lipopolysaccharide (LPS) is the major component of the surface of Gram-negative bacteria and its polysaccharide portion is situated at the outermost region. We investigated the relationship between the polysaccharide portion of LPS and biofilm formation using a series of Escherichia coli mutants defective in genes earlier shown to affect the LPS sugar compositions. Biofilm formation by a deep rough LPS mutant, the hldE strain, was strongly enhanced in comparison with the parental strain and other LPS mutants. The hldE strain also showed a phenotype of increased auto-aggregation and stronger cell surface hydrophobicity compared to the wild-type. Similar results were obtained with another deep rough LPS mutant, the waaC strain whose LPS showed same molecular mass as that of the hldE strain. Confocal laser scanning microscopy (CLSM) analysis and biofilm formation assay using DNase I revealed that biofilm formation by the hldE strain was dependent on extracellular DNA. Furthermore, a loss of flagella and an increase in amount of outer membrane vesicles in case of the hldE strain were also observed by transmission electron microscopy and atomic force microscopy, respectively. In addition, we demonstrated that a mutation in the hldE locus, which alters the LPS structure, caused changes in both expression and properties of several surface bacterial factors involved in biofilm formation and virulence. We suggest that the implication of these results should be considered in the context of biofilm formation on abiotic surfaces, which is frequently associated with nosocominal infections such as the catheter-associated infections.

Although biofilms have been observed early in the history of microbial research, their impact has only recently been fully recognized. Biofilm infections, which contribute to up to 80% of human microbial infections, are associated with common human disorders, such as diabetes mellitus and poor dental hygiene, but also with medical implants. The associated chronic infections such as wound infections, dental caries and periodontitis significantly enhance morbidity, affect quality of life and can aid development of follow‐up diseases such as cancer. Biofilm infections remain challenging to treat and antibiotic monotherapy is often insufficient, although some rediscovered traditional compounds have shown surprising efficiency. Innovative anti‐biofilm strategies include application of anti‐biofilm small molecules, intrinsic or external stimulation of production of reactive molecules, utilization of materials with antimicrobial properties and dispersion of biofilms by digestion of the extracellular matrix, also in combination with physical biofilm breakdown. Although basic principles of biofilm formation have been deciphered, the molecular understanding of the formation and structural organization of various types of biofilms has just begun to emerge. Basic studies of biofilm physiology have also resulted in an unexpected discovery of cyclic dinucleotide second messengers that are involved in interkingdom crosstalk via specific mammalian receptors. These findings even open up new venues for exploring novel anti‐biofilm strategies.