So what do you think of biofilms thus far?  It’s a lot to take in, I admit, however there is a bit more I need to tell you.  Biofilms have been linked to several good phenomenon and several scary diseases.  Let’s start with the bad first.

 

The Bad

            We’ve talked about tooth decay a bit but let’s look at where it can lead.  There have been studies⁹ linking bacterial infections of the mouth to infections such as bacterial endocarditis (inflammations of the heart lining and valves) and coronary artery disease.  There are even studies looking into possible connections between diabetes mellitus because of the high correlation between these patients and periodontal disease.  The common childhood ear infection otitis media, cystic fibrosis, Legionnaire’s disease have all been linked to biofilms.¹⁰

                Biofilms have also been linked to several hospital acquired infections.  These infections are the result of the interface between the soft, moist tissues of the patient and the solid surface of the medical device.  Several different devices (catheters, mechanical heart valves, hip replacements) have been the focus of study and are currently being studied for their impact.⁶

                And finally, biofilms because of their community structure (one for all and all for one) are increasingly resistant to antibiotics.¹⁰  How will this affect the effective management of biofilms?

 

The Good

            Now for some good news.  Not all biofilms are bad.  In fact some industries use them and want them around.  Sewer water treatment centers and industries use biofilms to filter contaminated water and metabolize any impurities.  The biochemical byproducts from biofilms have been found to be useful in the production of medicines, food additives and even as cleaning agents.¹⁰ 

            Other than positive health effects biofilms have been used for numerous environmental uses.  Plants have biofilms attached to their root systems and are a main source of nutrient cycling.  The increased flow of nutrients to the plants has increased agricultural productivity.  Biofilms have also been effectively used in bioremediation of oil spills.¹¹  And finally, other than oil spills, biofilms have been used to clean up a variety of soil and water contimanition.¹⁰

                Now that you are armed with some of the bad and the good aspects of biofilms how do you suppose scientists should go about cleaning up or killing off biofilms?  Should there be research into the destruction of biofilms or should they researched for informational purposes only?

Just to make sure you were paying attention, take the three questions asked above and write an essay answering the questions.