High release of Candida albicans eDNA as protection for the scaffolding of polymicrobial biofilm formed with Staphylococcus aureus and Streptococcus mutans against the enzymatic activity of DNase I

Santiago M Lattar; Rene Peter Schneider; Vidal Jorge Eugenio; Gabriel Padilla

doi:10.1007/s42770-024-01550-4

High release of Candida albicans eDNA as protection for the scaffolding of polymicrobial biofilm formed with Staphylococcus aureus and Streptococcus mutans against the enzymatic activity of DNase I

Braz J Microbiol. 2024 Oct 31. doi: 10.1007/s42770-024-01550-4. Online ahead of print.

Authors

Santiago M Lattar¹, Rene Peter Schneider², Vidal Jorge Eugenio³, Gabriel Padilla⁴

Affiliations

¹ Cell Biology of Microorganism Laboratory, Department of Microbiology, Institute of Biological Science, Federal University of Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte, BH, Brazil. santiagolattar@gmail.com.
² Polytechnic School, University of São Paulo, São Paulo, SP, Brazil.
³ Department of Microbiology and Immunology, University of Mississippi Medical Center, Jackson, MS, USA.
⁴ Bioproducts Laboratory, Department of Microbiology, Institute of Biomedical Science, University of São Paulo, São Paulo, SP, Brazil. gpadilla@icb.usp.br.

PMID: 39480631
DOI: 10.1007/s42770-024-01550-4

Abstract

This study aimed to determine the protective role of the high release of C. albicans extracellular DNA (eDNA) in a polymicrobial biofilm formed by S. aureus and S. mutans in the course of DNase I treatment. A tube-flow biofilm bioreactor was developed to mimic biofilm formation in the oral cavity. eDNA release was quantified by real-time PCR (qPCR) and confocal microscopy analysis were used to determine the concentration and distribution of eDNA and intracellular DNA (iDNA). The mean amount of eDNA released by each species in the polymicrobial was higher than that in monospecies biofilms (S. aureus: 3.1 × 10^-2 ng/μl polymicrobial versus 5.1 × 10^-4 ng/μl monospecies; S. mutans: 3 × 10^-1 ng/μl polymicrobial versus 2.97 × 10^-2 ng/μl monospecies; C. albicans: 8.35 ng/μl polymicrobial versus 4.85 ng/μl monospecies). The large amounts of eDNA released by C. albicans (96%) in polymicrobial biofilms protects the S. aureus and S. mutans cells against the degradation by DNase I and dampens the effect of clindamycin.

Keywords: C. albicans; Staphylococcus aureus; Streptococcus mutans; Antibiotics; Biofilms.

Abstract

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