TITLE:
Stress-Induced Dispersal of Staphylococcus epidermidis Biofilm Is Due to Compositional Changes in Its Biofilm Matrix
AUTHORS:
Charlène Coulon, Irina Sadovskaya, Philippe Lencel, Saïd Jabbouri, Jeffrey B. Kaplan, Sigrid Flahaut
KEYWORDS:
Staphylococcus epidermidis; Biofilm Composition; Detachment; Nutrient Limitation
JOURNAL NAME:
Advances in Microbiology,
Vol.2 No.4,
December
27,
2012
ABSTRACT: Biofilm formation is an important virulence factor of Staphylococcus epidermidis. However, little is known about the mechanisms of staphylococcal biofilm dispersal. In the present study, we investigated biofilm dispersal of the model biofilm-forming strain S. epidermidis RP62A under oligotrophic stress conditions. We found that oligotrophic stress led to rapid dispersal of pre-formed biofilms and concomitant changes in the composition of the extracellular matrix, including a decrease in poly-N-acetylglucosamine polysaccharide and an increase in proteins. Our results suggest that modifications in biofilm integrity caused by compositional changes in the biofilm matrix can induce biofilm dispersal.