Antibiofilm activity in the culture supernatant of a marine Pseudomonas sp. bacterium

Abstract

In the marine environment, most solid surfaces are covered by microbial biofilms, mainly composed of bacteria and diatoms. The negative effects of biofilms on materials and equipment are numerous and pose a major problem for industry and human activities. Since marine micro-organisms are an important source of bioactive metabolites, it is possible that they synthesize natural ecofriendly molecules that inhibit the adhesion of organisms. In this work, the antibiofilm potential of marine bacteria was investigated using Flavobacterium sp. II2003 as a target. This strain is potentially a pioneer strain of bacteria that was previously selected from marine biofilms for its strong biofilm-forming ability. The culture supernatants of 86 marine heterotrophic bacteria were tested for their ability to inhibit Flavobacterium sp. II2003 biofilm formation and the Pseudomonas sp. IV2006 strain was identified as producing a strong antibiofilm activity. The Pseudomonas sp. IV2006 culture supernatant (SN_IV2006) inhibited Flavobacterium sp. II2003 adhesion without killing the bacteria or inhibiting its growth. Moreover, SN_IV2006 had no effect on the Flavobacterium sp. II2003 cell surface hydrophilic/hydrophobic and general Lewis acid-base characteristics, but modified the surface properties of glass, making it on the whole more hydrophilic and more alkaline and significantly reducing bacterial cell adhesion. The glass-coating molecules produced by Pseudomonas sp. IV2006 were found to probably be polysaccharides, whereas the antibiofilm molecules contained in SN_IV2006 and acting during the 2 h adhesion step on glass and polystyrene surfaces would be proteinaceous. Finally, SN_IV2006 exhibited a broad spectrum of antibiofilm activity on other marine bacteria such as Flavobacterium species that are pathogenic for fish, and human pathogens in both the medical environment, such as Staphylococcus aureus and Pseudomonas aeruginosa, and in the food industry, such as Yersinia enterocolitica. Thus, a wide range of applications could be envisaged for the SN_IV2006 compounds, both in aquaculture and human health.

Keywords: Flavobacterium; Pseudomonas; antibiofilm; marine bacteria; pathogenic bacteria; surface properties.