Dormant bacteria within Staphylococcus epidermidis biofilms have low inflammatory properties and maintain tolerance to vancomycin and penicillin after entering planktonic growth

Abstract

Staphylococcus epidermidis is the most commonly isolated etiological agent of nosocomial infections mainly due to its ability to establish biofilms on indwelling medical devices. Detachment of bacteria from S. epidermidis biofilms and subsequent growth in the planktonic form is a hallmark in the pathogenesis of these infections leading to dissemination. Here we showed that S. epidermidis cells collected from biofilms cultured in conditions that promote cell viability present marked changes in their physiological status upon initiating a planktonic mode of growth. When compared to cells growing in biofilms, they displayed an increased SYBR green I staining intensity, increased transcription of the rpiA gene, decreased transcription of icaA gene as well as higher susceptibility to vancomycin and penicillin antibiotics. When bacteria collected from biofilms with high proportions of dormant cells were subsequently cultured in the planktonic mode, a large proportion of cells maintained a low SYBR staining intensity and increased resistance to vancomycin and penicillin, a profile typical of dormant cells. This phenotype further associated with a decreased ability of these biofilm-derived cells to induce the production of pro-inflammatory cytokines by bone marrow-derived dendritic cells in vitro, as determined by pro-inflammatory cytokine quantification. These results demonstrated that cells detached from the biofilm maintain a dormant cell-like phenotype, having a low pro-inflammatory effect and decreased susceptibility to antibiotics suggesting these cells may contribute for the recalcitrant nature of biofilm infections.