Bacterial vaginosis (BV) is a common infection in reproductive age woman and is characterized by dysbiosis of the healthy vaginal flora which is dominated by Lactobacilli, followed by growth of bacteria like Gardnerella vaginalis. The ability of G. vaginalis to form biofilms contributes to the high rates of recurrence that are typical for BV and which unfortunately make repeated antibiotic therapy inevitable. Here we developed a biofilm model for G. vaginalis and screened a large spectrum of compounds for their ability to prevent biofilm formation and to resolve an existing G. vaginalis biofilm. The antibiotics metronidazole and tobramycin were highly effective in preventing biofilm formation, but had no effect on an established biofilm. The application of the amphoteric tenside sodium cocoamphoacetate (SCAA) led to disintegration of existing biofilms, reducing biomass by 51% and viability by 61% and it was able to increase the effect of metronidazole by 40% (biomass) and 61% (viability). Our data show that attacking the biofilm and the bacterial cells by the combination of an amphoteric tenside with the antibiotic metronidazole might be a useful strategy against BV.

Download full-text PDF

Source
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4844189PMC
http://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0154086PLOS

Publication Analysis

Top Keywords

gardnerella vaginalis
8
biofilm formation
8
amphoteric tenside
8
biofilm
6
vaginalis
5
screening compounds
4
compounds gardnerella
4
vaginalis biofilms
4
biofilms bacterial
4
bacterial vaginosis
4

Similar Publications

Want AI Summaries of new PubMed Abstracts delivered to your In-box?

Enter search terms and have AI summaries delivered each week - change queries or unsubscribe any time!