Microbial Biofilms

An examination of the research and translational application to prevent and treat biofilm-associated diseases

In the decade since the first edition of Microbial Biofilms was published, the interest in this field has expanded, spurring breakthrough research that has advanced the treatment of biofilm-associated diseases. This second edition takes the reader on an exciting, extensive review of bacterial and fungal biofilms, ranging from basic molecular interactions to innovative therapies, with particular emphasis on the division of labor in biofilms, new approaches to combat the threat of microbial biofilms, and how biofilms evade the host defense.

Chapters written by established investigators cover recent findings, and contributions from investigators new to the field provide unique and fresh insights. Specifically,

Microbial Biofilms provides

• state-of-the-art research in the field of bacterial and fungal biofilms
• detailed descriptions of the in vitro and in vivo models available to evaluate microbial biofilms
• future areas of research and their translational and clinical applications

Microbial Biofilms is a useful reference for researchers and clinicians. It will also provide insight in the dynamic field of microbial biofilms for graduate and postgraduate students.

Mahmoud A. Ghannoum is a Professor in the Department of Dermatology at Case Western Reserve University and University Hospitals Case Medical Center and Director of the Center for Medical Mycology. Dr. Ghannoum's investigations include the biology, pathogenesis, and resistance of clinically important fungiCandida,Aspergillus, andCryptococcus, and his work has recently focused on the oral microbiome, fungal species, and human disease. He has published more than 300 peer-reviewed articles in the field of biofilms, microbial pathogenesis, and preclinical in vitro and in vivo evaluations of antimicrobials.

Matthew Parsek is a Professor of Microbiology at the University of Washington, School of Medicine at Seattle. Dr. Parsek’s research focuses on microbial community behaviors and their relationship to disease.

Marvin Whiteley is the Director of the Center for Infectious Disease and a fellow of the John Ring LaMontagne Chair in Infectious Diseases and Global Health at the University of Texas at Austin. Dr. Whiteley's research focuses on understanding how microbes within infection sites cooperate to cause disease.

Pranab Mukherjee is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Dermatology at Case Western Reserve University. Dr. Mukherjee has extensive experience in fungal pathogenesis and microbial biofilms, including analyses of their biochemical and molecular pathways using systems biology approaches. He also studies the human microbiome (bacteriome and mycobiome) in health and disease, including HIV-infection, corneal infections, inflammatory bowel disease, eczema, and psoriasis. He advises pharmaceutical companies in antifungal drug development.

Contributors

Preface

Acknowledgments

1 New Technologies for Studying Biofilms

2 Fungal Biofilms: In Vivo Models for Discovery of Anti-Biofilm Drugs

3 Biofilm Development

4 Division of Labor in Biofilms: the Ecology of Cell Differentiation

5 Candida albicans Biofilm Development and Its Genetic Control

6 Candida Biofilms: Development, Architecture, and Resistance

7 Biofilm Formation by Cryptococcus neoformans

8 Aspergillus Biofilm In Vitro and In Vivo

9 Adhesins Involved in Attachment to Abiotic Surfaces by Gram-Negative Bacteria

10 Biofilm Matrix Proteins

11 Bacterial Extracellular Polysaccharides in Biofilm Formation and Function

12 The Biology of the Escherichia coli Extracellular Matrix

13 Antimicrobial Tolerance in Biofilms

14 How Biofilms Evade Host Defenses

15 c-di-GMP and its Effects on Biofilm Formation and Dispersion: a Pseudomonas Aeruginosa Review

16 Mechanisms of Competition in Biofilm Communities

17 Dispersal from Microbial Biofilms

18 Chemical Biology Strategies for Biofilm Control

19 From Biology to Drug Development: New Approaches to Combat the Threat of Fungal Biofilms

Index

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