New insights into biofilm formation could lead to better therapies, but mysteries remain
Monday, July 20, 2015 - 15:30
in Biology & Nature
Biofilms are tough, opportunistic, highly antibiotic resistant bacterial coatings that form on catheters and on medical devices implanted within the body. Investigators have now shown that a 'messenger molecule' produced by the opportunistic human pathogen, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, encourages bacteria to colonize catheters in the bladders of laboratory mice, where they form biofilms.