Our skin is a host to many harmless microorganisms. Among these is Staphylococcus epidermidis. This bacterium, although harmless to our epithelia, is an opportunistic pathogen when entering the bloodstream. Due to S. epidermidis’ prevalence, and the fact that it readily forms biofilms, its potential as an infectious agent is high among patients with pre-existing ailments. Through our prior research, we found that Lemongrass, Clove Bud and Cinnamon Leaf essential oils display S. epidermidis antibacterial properties. However, their effectiveness at preventing biofilm formation is an area that requires attention. In this research, S. epidermidis was cultured and further grown on plasma-treated polystyrene surfaces to form biofilms, whose growth was confirmed with crystal violet staining. To assess biofilm growth inhibition, two methods were used: first, essential oils were mixed with cultures of S. epidermidis during the biofilm formation phase and second, surfaces coated with S. epidermidis biofilm were treated with Lemongrass, Clove Bud, and Cinnamon Leaf essential oils. Results showed that in the absence of essential oils, biofilm growth plateaued at 2 hours while shaking at room temperature. Initial results show that adding essential oils to the S. epidermidis culture during the biofilm-formation phase would sometimes result in decreased biofilm formation against a positive control of only cultured bacteria, although this decrease was not always seen. It is thought that solubility issues of the essential oils in the broth leads to less biofilm inhibition. Additionally, adding essential oils to biofilm surfaces did not result in a loss of biofilm. For this presentation, results related to biofilm growth optimization, as well as essential oil-mediated growth inhibition studies, will be presented.

Assessment of Staphylococcus epidermidis biofilm inhibition using essential oils

ACS Spring 2022

The official archive and repository for all ACS Meetings & Expositions abstracts and select posters or presentations.