There are a many situations in which biofilm formation is undesirable, for example, on medical devices, filtration plants, and household plumbing. In addition to treating existing biofilms, it is possible to prepare coatings on surfaces that hinder the formation of biofilms, either during adsorption, or during biofilm development. To date, the main focus of coating development has been on chemical treatment; here we describe our efforts at topographic treatments to hinder biofilm formation. We focus on the effect of colloidal crystals to hinder biofilm formation. Colloidal crystals are arrays of colloidal particles, in this case spherical particles. Spherical particles were chosen because they present to the microorganism the maximum curvature in all directions. We discuss how colloidal crystals reduce the initial adherence of the bacterium, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, by up to 99%, and also how they increase the susceptibility to treatment by antibiotics. We also show, separately, that colloidal crystal films retard the formation of colonies and early-stage biofilms, and discuss the mechanism. Finally, we show that colloidal crystals retard the development of biofilms composed of the yeast, Candida albicans. Colloidal crystals are easy and inexpensive to prepare on a variety of surfaces and can also be used as the template to mold surfaces. Thus, we anticipate that that their implementation should be a cost-effective adjunct to the use of chemical antifouling agents, chemical agents, and antibiotic treatments.

Hindering biofilm formation using colloidal-crystal topographic films

254th National Meeting (2017)

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