• Korean Journal of Food Science and Technology
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• v.51 no.6
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• pp.604-609
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• 2019

To control pathogenic E. coli in biofilm, bacteriophages were isolated from environmental samples. Seventeen isolates had depolymerase activities by translucent zones at the rims of plaques. To determine biofilm-forming ability, an abiotic plastic surface of polystyrene was used; E. coli O103 showed the highest biofilm formation at 30℃ after 24 h. Moreover, biofilm by E. coli O103 on the biotic surface of lettuce was observed by a scanning electron microscope. The bacteriophage cocktail of ΦNOECP40 and ΦNOECP44 showing depolymerase activities was prepared to eliminate the E. coli inbiofilm. By organic acids, reduction of E. coli in biofilm was insignificant and almost undetectable. However, the abundance of E. coli in biofilm was reduced by 3 log CFU/mL from 7.3 log CFU/mL after 60 min with the bacteriophage cocktail. Therefore, we suggest that bacteriophages with depolymerase could be utilized to effectively control pathogenic E. coli in biofilm.

• Journal of dental hygiene science
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• v.12 no.1
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• pp.39-44
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• 2012

For the purpose of examining the dental biofilm reduction effect and control difficulty level through a dental biofilm control program in this study, the total of 131 medical records (82.9%) were used for the final analysis upon excluding the records that were not suitable for this study among the records of 158 persons for the medical records of clinical hygiene case reports that were submitted from 2006 to 2011 by students at the Department of Dental Hygiene at N University located in Chungnam region. The result of examining the dental biofilm reduction effect according to the visit number when conducting a dental biofilm control program showed that the dental biofilm index reduced meaningfully as the visit number increased. However, in the case of those that visited for 7 sessions, the level of reduction was not statistically meaningful. For the purpose of comparing the dental biofilm index mean per area of teeth during the final session visit of dental biofilm control program, the area of teeth was classified into labial/buccal surface, lingual/palatal surface and proximal surface, and the dental biofilm index of lingual/palatal surface was the highest with 26.5%. The result of measuring the dental biofilm of maxilla/mandible revealed meaningful differences between the dental biofilm index of maxilla and mandible. The result of analyzing the dental biofilm index of labial/buccal surface, lingual/palatal surface and proximal surface revealed meaingful differences among the dental biofilm index of labial/ buccal surface, lingual/palatal surface and proximal surface.

• Food Science and Preservation
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• v.30 no.1
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• pp.42-51
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• 2023

This study aimed to characterize a lytic Salmonella Typhimurium-specific (ST) phage and its biofilm control capability against S. Typhimurium biofilm on polypropylene surface. ST phage was isolated, propagated, and purified from water used in a slaughterhouse. The morphology of ST phage was observed via transmission electron microscopy. Its bactericidal effect was evaluated by determining bacterial concentrations after the phage treatment at various multiplicities of infection (MOIs) of 0.01, 1.0, and 100. Once the biofilm was formed on the polypropylene tube after incubation at 37℃ for 48 h, the phage was treated and its antibiofilm capability was determined using crystal violet staining and plate count method. The phage was isolated and purified at a final concentration of ~11 log PFU/mL. It was identified as a myophage with an icosahedral head (~104 nm) and contractile tail (~90-115 nm). ST phage could significantly decrease S. Typhimurium population by ~2.8 log CFU/mL at an MOI of 100. After incubation for 48 h, biofilm formation on polypropylene surface was confirmed with a bacterial population of ~6.9 log CFU/cm². After 1 h treatment with ST phage, the bacterial population in the biofilm was reduced by 2.8 log CFU/cm². Therefore, these results suggest that lytic ST phage as a promising biofilm control agent for eradicating S. Typhimurium biofilm formed on food contact surfaces.

• The Journal of the Korean dental association
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• v.56 no.8
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• pp.432-436
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• 2018

Dental caries and periodontitis are the major concerns of oral disease to human, and its etiologic factor is dental biofilm. The aim of this study is to discuss the clinical application method and the meaning of dental biofilm control in the disabled patients. Generally, ultrasonic scaler are likely to generate excessive stimulus to the disabled patients. Rubber cup application using Ni-Ti engine could remove dental biofilm more comfortably to the disabled patients.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.26 no.12
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• pp.2116-2126
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• 2016

Bacterial biofilms are spatially structured communities that contain bacterial cells with a wide range of physiological states. The spatial distribution and speciation of copper in unsaturated Pseudomonas putida CZ1 biofilms that accumulated 147.0 mg copper per g dry weight were determined by transmission electron microscopy coupled with energy dispersive X-ray analysis, and micro-X-ray fluorescence microscopy coupled with micro-X-ray absorption near edge structure (micro-XANES) analysis. It was found that copper was mainly precipitated in a $75{\mu}m$ thick layer as copper phosphate in the middle of the biofilm, while there were two living cell layers in the air-biofilm and biofilm-medium interfaces, respectively, distinguished from the copper precipitation layer by two interfaces. The X-ray absorption fine structure analysis of biofilm revealed that species resembling $Cu_3(PO_4)_2$ predominated in biofilm, followed by Cu-Citrate- and Cu-Glutathione-like species. Further analysis by micro-XANES revealed that 94.4% of copper were $Cu_3(PO_4)_2$-like species in the layer next to the air interface, whereas the copper species of the layer next to the medium interface were composed by 75.4% $Cu_3(PO_4)_2$, 10.9% Cu-Citrate-like species, and 11.2% Cu-Glutathione-like species. Thereby, it was suggested that copper was initially acquired by cells in the biofilm-air interface as a citrate complex, and then transported out and bound by out membranes of cells, released from the copper-bound membranes, and finally precipitated with phosphate in the extracellular matrix of the biofilm. These results revealed a clear spatial pattern of copper precipitation in unsaturated biofilm, which was responsible for the high copper tolerance and accumulation of the biofilm.

• Journal of Environmental Science International
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• v.30 no.5
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• pp.369-378
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• 2021

In this study, we investigated the effects of indole on biofilm formation inhibition in Pantoea agglomerans (P. agglomerans). In the biofilm growth assay, indole inhibited biofilm formation across all the growth time. Depending on biofilm growth stage, indole exhibited biofilm inhibition and anti-bacterial effects on planktonic cells. Through the analysis of the proportion rate between biofilm and Colony Forming Units (CFU) and inhibition rate of indole, we confirmed that depending on the biofilm stage of P. agglomerans, indole treatment timing was more important than the treatment duration. By comparing gene expression rates through rt-qPCR P.agglomerans affected by indole was found to significantly change quorum sensing (pagI/R) and indole transportation (bssS) gene expressions. Throughout all, indole exhibited both antimicrobial and anti-biofilm effects on P. agglomerans. In addition, we confirmed the anti-biofilm effects of indole on mature biofilm. In conclusion, indole as a signal molecule, can exhibit anti-biofilm effects through bacterial quorum sensing inhibition and indole affects. Therefore, indole can regulate biofilm bacteria especially gram-negative opportunistic pathogens.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.33 no.6
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• pp.715-723
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• 2023

Microbial biofilms are resilient, immune-evasive, often antibiotic-resistant health challenges, and increasingly the target for research into novel therapeutic strategies. We evaluated the effects of a nutraceutical enzyme and botanical blend (NEBB) on established biofilm. Five microbial strains with known implications in chronic human illnesses were tested: Candida albicans, Staphylococcus aureus, Staphylococcus simulans (coagulase-negative, penicillin-resistant), Borrelia burgdorferi, and Pseudomonas aeruginosa. The strains were allowed to form biofilm in vitro. Biofilm cultures were treated with NEBB containing enzymes targeted at lipids, proteins, and sugars, also containing the mucolytic compound N-acetyl cysteine, along with antimicrobial extracts from cranberry, berberine, rosemary, and peppermint. The post-treatment biofilm mass was evaluated by crystal-violet staining, and metabolic activity was measured using the MTT assay. Average biofilm mass and metabolic activity for NEBB-treated biofilms were compared to the average of untreated control cultures. Treatment of established biofilm with NEBB resulted in biofilm-disruption, involving significant reductions in biofilm mass and metabolic activity for Candida and both Staphylococcus species. For B. burgdorferi, we observed reduced biofilm mass, but the remaining residual biofilm showed a mild increase in metabolic activity, suggesting a shift from metabolically quiescent, treatment-resistant persister forms of B. burgdorferi to a more active form, potentially more recognizable by the host immune system. For P. aeruginosa, low doses of NEBB significantly reduced biofilm mass and metabolic activity while higher doses of NEBB increased biofilm mass and metabolic activity. The results suggest that targeted nutraceutical support may help disrupt biofilm communities, offering new facets for integrative combinational treatment strategies.

• Membrane and Water Treatment
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• v.14 no.1
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• pp.35-45
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• 2023

Biofilms significantly affect the performance of wastewater treatment processes in which biodegradability of numerous microorganisms are actively involved, and various technologies have been applied to secure microbial biofilms. Understanding changes in biofilm characteristics by regulating expression of signaling molecules is important to control and regulate biofilms in membrane bioreactor, i.e., biofouling. This study investigated effects of addition of acyl-homoserine lactones (AHL) as a controllable factor for the microbial signaling system on biofilm formation of Pseudomonas aeruginosa PAO1 and multiple strains in membrane bioreactor. The addition of three AHL, i.e., C4-, C6-, and C8-HSL, at a concentration of 200 ㎍/L, enhanced the formation of the PAO1 biofilm and the degree of increases in the biofilm formation of PAO1 were 70.2%, 76.6%, and 72.9%, respectively. The improvement of biofilm formation of individual strains by C4-HSL was an average of 68%, and the microbial consortia increased by approximately 52.1% in the presence of 200 ㎍/L C4-HSL. CLSM images showed that more bacterial cells were present on the membrane surface after the AHL application. In the COMSTAT results, biomass and thickness were increased up to 2.2 times (PAO1) and 1.6 times (multi-strains) by C4-HSL. This study clearly showed that biofilm formation was increased by the application of AHL to individual strain groups, including PAO1 and microbial consortia, and significant increases were observed when 50 or 100 ㎍/L AHL was administered. This suggests that AHL application can improve the biofilm formation of microorganisms, which could yield an enhancement in efficiency of biofilm control, such as in various biofilm reactors including membrane bioreactor and bioflocculent systems in water/wastewater treatment processes.

• Food Science of Animal Resources
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• v.40 no.4
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• pp.668-674
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• 2020

Manuka honey (MH) has been shown anti-bacterial activity against several pathogenic bacteria. However, the inhibitory effect of MH on biofilm formation by Escherichia coli O157:H7 has not yet been examined. In this study, MH significantly reduced E. coli O157:H7 biofilm. Moreover, pre- and post-treatment with MH also significantly reduced E. coli O157:H7 biofilm. Cellular metabolic activities exhibited that the viability of E. coli O157:H7 biofilm cells was reduced in the presence of MH. Further, colony forming unit of MH-treated E. coli O157:H7 biofilm was significantly reduced by over 70%. Collectively, this study suggests the potential of anti-biofilm properties of MH which could be applied to control E. coli O157:H7.

• Microbiology and Biotechnology Letters
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• v.44 no.4
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• pp.535-539
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• 2016

The prevalence of pathogenic bacteria such as Streptococcus parauberis (Sp), Streptococcus iniae (Si), and Edwardsiella tarda (Et) in flounder fish farms in Jeju Island and their management by gallium treatment was studied. Sp, Si, and Et were found to exhibit a low rate of cell growth and high biofilm formation. Hence, in the present study, cell growth and biofilm formation were measured spectrophotometrically 72 h after the addition of different concentrations of gallium (2, 4, or 8 mg/ml). In addition, cell death was measured by resazurin and propidium iodide staining assays. The results showed that bacterial cell death increased and biofilm formation decreased with an increasing concentration of gallium. Hence, the present study signifies that the use of gallium against bacterial pathogens could be useful for disease management in flounder farms.