Futurity of Microbial Biofilm Research

Abstract

Biofilm is an association of microorganisms that is irreversibly attached to a wide range of surfaces, adhering to different biotic and abiotic compositions, and contained in an extracellular polymeric substance matrix, posing a significant threat to the food, healthcare, and medical device industries, as well as the petroleum and aviation industries. Biofilms are a major threat once they form because they cause infectious diseases and economic loss, they can increase food cross-contamination, and they change the cleaning and disinfection dynamics in the food industry. A strong disinfectant is needed to prevent biofilms from forming and to remove them from the reversible attachment and irreversible attachment stages. However, due to increased antibiotic resistance in different bacterial communities, formation of multi-species, clogging, accumulation of biofoulers, and cell/tissue destruction that arise from mitigation processes, some of the methods developed to eradicate and mitigate biofilms – and successful treatment of infections associated with biofilms – are troubled, posing a challenge in biofilm control and mitigation.