Center for Biofilm Engineering

News Update: 

May, 2003

Volume 6, Issue 5

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Research Highlights

Paper Spotlight by Phil Stewart

How much of the antibiotic resistance exhibited by bacteria in biofilms can be accounted for by nutrient limitation and stationary-phase existence of at least some of the cells in a biofilm? This question was addressed in a project conducted by a former CBE undergraduate, Jeff Anderl, in Dr. Stewart’s Control Lab. Biofilms formed by Klebsiella pneumoniae resisted killing during prolonged exposure to the antibiotics ampicillin or ciprofloxacin even though these agents have been shown to penetrate through bacterial aggregates. Experiments with free-floating bacteria showed that stationary phase bacteria were protected from killing by either antibiotic, especially when the test was performed in medium lacking carbon and nitrogen sources. The average specific growth rate of bacteria in biofilms was only 0.032 h^-1 compared to the specific growth rate of planktonic bacteria of 0.59 h^-1 measured in the same medium. Glucose did not penetrate all the way through the biofilm and oxygen was shown to penetrate only into the upper 100 microns. Taken together, these results indicate that Klebsiella pneumoniae in this system experience nutrient limitation locally within the biofilm leading to zones in which the bacteria enter stationary phase and are growing slowly or not at all. In these inactive regions, bacteria are less susceptible to killing by antibiotics. This protective mechanism appears to explain half or more of the antibiotic resistance expressed in the biofilm state in this system.

Anderl, J.N., J. Zahller, F. Roe and P.S. Stewart, "Role of Nutrient Limitation and Stationary-Phase Existence in Klebsiella pneumoniae Biofilm Resistance to Ampicillin and Ciprofloxacin," Antimicrob. Agents Chemother., 47:1251-1256 (2003).

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Upcoming Technical Advisory Conference and Workshops

CBE Industrial Associates: Please mark your calendar for the Summer 2003 Technical Advisory Conference, to be held in Bozeman, MT, July 22-24, 2003. You will be receiving registration materials via mail in the near future.

These workshops will be offered to Industrial Associate members:

Biofilm Methods Workshop
July 21, 2003
To register, contact Paul Sturman (paul_stu@erc.montana.edu).

Advanced Biofilm Methods Workshop
July 21, 2003
To register, contact Paul Sturman (paul_stu@erc.montana.edu).
 

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New Industrial Associate Member

DuPont delivers science-based solutions that make real differences in people's lives around the world in areas such as food and nutrition, health care, apparel, safety and security, construction, electronics and transportation. Look closely at the things around your home and workplace, and chances are, you'll find dozens of items made with DuPont materials. The designated Industrial Associate representative will be John Gannon. The DuPont web site is http://www1.dupont.com/NASApp/dupontglobal/corp/index.jsp
 

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Grant Announcement

Sequoia Sciences received a Phase II SBIR grant for $1 million of which the CBE will receive a $250,000 subcontract. Sequoia is closely allied with the Missouri Botanical Garden, and will be providing CBE’s Mark Pasmore and Jennifer Sestrich with the extracts of > 12,000 parts of various plants to screen them for anti-biofilm activity. This will be the first time that the Center has identified specific classes of compounds that affect biofilms.
See “Sequoia Sciences and the Center for Biofilm Engineering Discover Five Novel Biofilm Inhibitors,” at http://www.sequoiasciences.com/Biofilm%20Release.htm

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Wiley Faculty Award for Meritorious Research

A leader in the field of slime, a superstar solar physicist and an innovative scholar of finance have won this year's Charles and Nora L. Wiley Faculty Award for Meritorious Research at MSU-Bozeman.

William Costerton, director of the Center for Biofilm Engineering; Dana Longcope, associate professor of physics; and Clark Maxam, associate professor of finance; will each receive $2,000 as winners of the 2003 Wiley award. Sponsored by the MSU Foundation, the prize is given in honor of the Wileys who were pioneer ranchers in Eastern Montana. Costerton is recognized for his revolutionary ideas about bacteria and for fathering a new field in microbiology called biofilms. After coining the term in 1978, Costerton has promoted the concept of biofilms more than any other person. He has been closely involved with almost all the major discoveries in that field, including the predominance of biofilms (or slime) in nature and in chronic infections, the resistance of biofilms to antimicrobial agents, the complex structure of biofilms, the role of cell signals in the formation of slime, and the distinct biofilm phenotype.

Costerton is the most prolific and influential author in the biofilm field based on searches of the ISI Web of Science databases. He has organized numerous conferences and travels extensively to explain biofilms. He has mentored scores of graduate students, post-docs and collaborating scientists.

See full story “MSU faculty honored for teaching, research achievements,” at http://www.montana.edu/commserv/csnews/nwview.php?article=907
 

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Media Coverage

Nature Biotechnology recently published an article on the biotechnology of biofilms. The Center, several associate companies and collaborators were prominently featured in the article.

Slimy business—the biotechnology of biofilms
Schachter B
Nature Biotechnology Apr 2003; 21:361-365

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Business to Business featured Bacterin, a spinoff of Montana State's Center for Biofilm Engineering, where the company's CEO Guy Cook worked as a microscopist before founding Bacterin in 1997. The firm, which markets to leading manufacturers of medical equipment, creates and tests anti-infective coatings for medical devices. Johnson & Johnson and Tyco are among the company's clients.

See the full story at: http://www.erc.montana.edu/Res-Lib99-SW/newsarchives/html/2003/Bacterin.htm

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The Center received recognition in a “Letter to the Editor” of Chemical & Engineering News.

“As a chemist who finished his Ph.D. work at Bristol University in the 1960s, I was interested in the article "Wake-up Call for British Chemistry." My sense is that the conclusions are correct; namely, the focus is more on incremental advance rather than higher risk fundamental research, and there is a lack of interdisciplinary departments; these are some of the reasons why I have lived in the U.S. for the past 20 years. One of the results of the U.S. Constitution giving two senators to each state, and the resulting state funding for smaller states, is that centers of excellence can exist in surprising places. An example and of note for me is the world-class biofilms center in Bozeman, Mont. “

Malcolm Watts
Kennett Square, Pa.

Chemical & Engineering News
March 31, 2003
Volume 81, Number 13

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Education

Prestigious Student Awards

Laura Jennings, a senior majoring in chemical engineering, has received a number of prestigious awards while at Montana State University–Bozeman. Most recently, she is the recipient of an NSF Graduate Research Fellowship. Awards made in April 2003 carry a stipend for each fellow of $27,500 for a 12-month tenure (prorated monthly at $2,291 for lesser periods) and an annual cost-of-education allowance of $10,500, paid to the Fellow's institution in lieu of tuition and fees.

She has also been selected for an $8,000 Phi Kappa Phi graduate fellowship given annually to 50 top college graduates in the country. She plans to attend graduate school at Cornell University.
See the full story at http://www.montana.edu/commserv/csnews/nwview.php?article=885

Ben Klayman received the Mary & Robert Sanks Graduate Fellowship from the Department of Civil Engineering, Montana State University–Bozeman, for the 2003-2004 academic year. The fellowship awards are $1,000 based on academic achievement and an essay on personal goals in the engineering field. Ben is a PhD graduate student in Civil & Environmental Engineering.

Amber Harrer received a fellowship sponsored by the Life Sciences Summer Undergraduate Research Programs. This fellowship will give Amber the opportunity to work in a lab for 10 weeks at the Biomedical Engineering Institute at the University of Minnesota in the Twin Cities. Amber is an undergraduate in Chemical Engineering at Montana State University–Bozeman.

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Upcoming CBE Workshops

Biofilm Image Analysis Workshop

July 10-11, 2003
Registration: see

http://www.erc.montana.edu/CBEssentials-SW/whats_new/workshops.htm

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Biofilm Methods Workshop (for Industrial Associate members)
 

July 21, 2003
Registration: contact Paul Sturman (paul_stu@erc.montana.edu)

Advanced Biofilm Methods Workshop (for Industrial Associate members)
 

July 21, 2003
Registration: contact Paul Sturman (paul_stu@erc.montana.edu)

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Microsensors Workshop

August 11-15, 2003
Registration: see http://www.erc.montana.edu/CBEssentials-SW/whats_new/workshops.htm
 

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Biofilm Methods Workshop
 

October 20-21, 2003
The workshop will cover:
- analysis and repeatability of biofilm measurements
- aseptic technique
- biofilm reactor design considerations
- four stages of biofilm study (growth, sampling, treatment, analysis)
- reactor protocols (set up, inoculation, treatment)
- anaerobic reactor design and operation
- microscopy for biofilm enumeration
- using fluorescent in-situ hybridization (FISH) probes to study biofilms, and
- biosafety instruction.

The cost of the two-day workshop is $1500. If you are interested in more information about the workshop, please contact Paul Sturman (paul_stu@erc.montana.edu).
 

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Workshop Results

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CBE People in Action

Darla Goeres, presented “Progress Report: Developing a Method to Test the Efficacy of Chemical Hot Tub Disinfectants," to the Antimicrobials Division of the US EPA, Crystal City, Virginia, April 9, 2003.

Bill Costerton as an invited speaker presented "Possible Role of Biofilms in TB," at the Center for Emerging Pathogens, New Jersey Medical School, Newark, NJ, April 22, 2003.

Bill Costerton as an invited speaker presented "Device-Related Infections :: the Role of Biofilms," National Academies meeting on the prevention of device-related infections, Washington, DC, April 23, 2003. This meeting was sponsored by Edwards Lifesciences.

Bill Costerton as an invited speaker presented "Biofilms: The Problem and Some Solutions," at the Johnson & Johnson Microbial Biofilms Symposium, Princeton, New Jersey, April 23-24, 2003.

Bill Costerton as an invited speaker presented "Biofilms in Nature and Disease," for the University of Buffalo Science Seminar, NY, April 25, 2003.

Bill was invited to participate in the Army Research Office (ARO) Biosciences Workshop, Cashiers, NC, April 27-30, 2003. He presented "The Use of the Biofilm Trap in Detecting and Responding to Bioterrorist Attacks with Bio-Weapons".

Mark Shirtliff presented “Staphylococcus aureus Biofilms,” Genome Therapeutics, Waltham, Massachusetts, February 20, 2003.

Mark Shirtliff presented “Proteomic, Microarray, and Host-Pathogen Interaction Studies of Staphylococcus aureus Biofilms” University of Maryland, Departments of Oral and Craniofacial Biological Sciences, February 26, 2003.

Mark Shirtliff presented “Staphylococcus aureus Biofilms,” Department of Infectious Diseases, Universita di Roma La Sapienza, Rome, Italy, March 21, 2003.

Mark Shirtliff presented “Treatment of Osteomyelitis and Septic Arthritis: Evidences from Animal Models,” Department of Infectious and Tropical Diseases, S. Bortolo Hospital, Vicenza, Italy, March 28, 2003.

Mark Shirtliff presented “Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy in the Treatment of Osteomyelitis” Terapia delle Infezioni Osteoarticolari 1o Meeting Internazionale, Vicenza, Italy, March 28, 2003.

Mark Shirtliff presented “A Search for Vaccines against Staphylococcal Biofilm-Mediated Infections,” Department of Microbiology, Danish Technological University, Copenhagen, Denmark, April 1, 2003.

Mark Shirtliff presented “Using Microarrays to Determine the Gene Expression Profiles in Biofilms,” Danish Technological Institute, Copenhagen, Denmark, April 3, 2003.

Mark Shirtliff presented “Staphylococcus aureus Biofilms,” Departments of Environmental Engineering and Biotechnology, Aalborg University, Denmark, April 7, 2003.

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Biofilm Movies and Publications

See Biofilm Movies at
http://www.erc.montana.edu/Res-Lib99-SW/Movies/Database/MD_DisplayScript.asp

See Publications at
http://www.erc.montana.edu/Res-Lib99-SW/pubs/Database/PD_DisplayScript.asp

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See the BiofilmsOnline.com May issue at http://www.BiofilmsOnline.com.

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Biofilms Journal

Announcement and Call for Papers
See http://www.erc.montana.edu/Res-Lib99-SW/newsarchives/Biofilms%20Journal/default.htm

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Recent Web Updates

Check the Recent Web Updates link located on the CBE home page, to view the latest information posted on the CBE web.

See <http://www.erc.montana.edu/Recent%20Web%20Updates/default.htm> 

The CBE News Update is a listserve newsletter. If you need to subscribe or unsubscribe from the listserve, follow the directions at the following CBE website.

http://www.erc.montana.edu/Res-Lib99-SW/newsarchives/subscribe.htm

An alternative to subscribing to the listserve is to view the CBE News Update on our web page at http://www.erc.montana.edu/Ind-Col99-SW/Current_Newsletter/default.htm. Newsletter archives can be found at http://www.erc.montana.edu/Res-Lib99-SW/newsarchives/index.htm