Biofilm inhibiting phytometabolites

Abstract

Biofilms are produced by some microorganisms to attach to any surface. These layers are mainly exopolysaccharide (EPS) in nature, but they also contain water, protein, and nucleic acids. One of the most important functions of this matrix is to protect microorganisms against drastic changes in some environmental factors such as UV light, water activity, osmotic pressure, pH, radiation, and the presence of antimicrobial agents. In addition to being one of the main reasons for several diseases, which affect public health, biofilm is also responsible for several significant issues in livestock, agriculture, food industries, and ventilation and irrigation systems. The most common procedures used to prevent the formation or removal of biofilms completely, which were already formed, include limiting nutrients required for microbial growth, sterilization of surface materials to prevent bacterial attachment, or removing biofilms by chemical or mechanical treatments. However, microorganisms that have the ability to form biofilms exhibit behaviors different from other microorganisms in terms of their growth rates and resistance to antibiotic or antifungal treatments. Besides, increasing resistance to antibiotics or antifungal agents in biofilm-forming microorganisms leads to remarkable problems in preventing biofilm formation or removing biofilms which are already formed. Thus, scientists are researching to discover novel agents which can be used for both inhibiting biofilm formation and removing it. Research presented that several phytometabolites have a great potential of being used as antibiofilm agents. This chapter aims to present some detailed information about biofilms and to review the research about the potential of phytometabolites as antibiofilm agents.