Biofilms

D López, H Vlamakis, R Kolter - Cold Spring Harbor …, 2010 - cshperspectives.cshlp.org
The ability to form biofilms is a universal attribute of bacteria. Biofilms are multicellular
communities held together by a self-produced extracellular matrix. The mechanisms that
different bacteria employ to form biofilms vary, frequently depending on environmental
conditions and specific strain attributes. In this review, we emphasize four well-studied
model systems to give an overview of how several organisms form biofilms: Escherichia coli,
Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Bacillus subtilis, and Staphylococcus aureus. Using these …

Our current understanding of fungal biofilms

G Ramage, E Mowat, B Jones, C Williams… - Critical reviews in …, 2009 - Taylor & Francis
Fungal biofilms are an escalating clinical problem associated with significant rates of
mortality. Candida albicans is the most notorious of all fungal biofilm formers. However, non-
Candida species, yeasts such as Cryptococcus neoformans, and filamentous moulds such
as Aspergillus fumigatus, have been shown to be implicated in biofilm-associated infections.
Fungal biofilms have distinct developmental phases, including adhesion, colonisation,
maturation and dispersal, which are governed by complex molecular events. Recalcitrance …