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Factors affecting biofilm formation by bacteria on fabrics

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Abstract

Fabrics act as fomites for microorganisms, thereby playing a significant role in infection transmission, especially in the healthcare and hospitality sectors. This study aimed to examine the biofilm formation ability of four nosocomial infection–causing bacteria (Acinetobacter calcoaceticus, Escherichia coli, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, and Staphylococcus aureus) on cotton, polyester, polyester-cotton blend, silk, wool, viscose, and nylon, used frequently in the healthcare sector, by qualitative and quantitative methods. The impact of temperature, pH, and relative humidity (RH) on biofilm formation was also assessed. P. aeruginosa and S. aureus were strong biofilm producers, while E. coli produced weak biofilm. Wool (maximum roughness) showed the highest bacterial load, while silk (lowest roughness) showed the least. P. aeruginosa exhibited a higher load on all fabrics, than other test bacteria. Extracellular polymeric substances were characterized by infrared spectroscopy. Roughness of biofilms was assessed by atomic force microscopy. For biofilm formation, optimum temperature, pH, and RH were 30 °C, 7.0, and 62%, respectively. MgCl2 and CaCl2 were the most effective in removing bacterial biofilm. In conclusion, biofilm formation was observed to be influenced by the type of fabric, bacteria, and environmental conditions. Implementing recommended guidelines for the effective disinfection of fabrics is crucial to curb the risk of nosocomial infections. In addition, designing modified healthcare fabrics that inhibit pathogen load could be an effective method to mitigate the transmission of infections.

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All data generated or analyzed during this study are included in this article [and its supplementary information files].

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Funding

The work was supported by the Science and Engineering Research Board, Government of India (Grant number: PDF/2021/001456).

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  1. Department of Biochemical Engineering and Biotechnology, Indian Institute of Technology Delhi, New Delhi, 110016, India

    Shweta Dixit, Swati Varshney & Shilpi Sharma

  2. Department of Textile and Fibre Engineering, Indian Institute of Technology Delhi, New Delhi, 110016, India

    Deepti Gupta

  3. Present address: Department of Biochemistry, All India Institute of Medical Sciences, New Delhi, 110029, India

    Swati Varshney

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  1. Shweta Dixit
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S. D.: funding acquisition; investigation; formal analysis; writing—original draft. S. V.: methodology; investigation. D. G.: supervision; writing—review and editing. S. S.: conceptualization; funding acquisition; project administration; supervision; formal analysis; writing—review and editing.

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Correspondence to Shilpi Sharma.

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Dixit, S., Varshney, S., Gupta, D. et al. Factors affecting biofilm formation by bacteria on fabrics. Int Microbiol (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10123-023-00460-z

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