Laser-induced vapour nanobubbles improve drug diffusion and efficiency in bacterial biofilms.
Eline TeirlinckRanhua XiongToon BransKatrien ForierJuan C FraireHeleen Van AckerNele MatthijsRiet De RyckeStefaan C De SmedtTom CoenyeKevin BraeckmansPublished in: Nature communications (2018)
Hindered penetration of antibiotics through biofilms is one of the reasons for the alarming increase in bacterial tolerance to antibiotics. Here, we investigate the potential of laser-induced vapour nanobubbles (VNBs) formed around plasmonic nanoparticles to locally disturb biofilm integrity and improve antibiotics diffusion. Our results show that biofilms of both Gram-negative (Burkholderia multivorans, Pseudomonas aeruginosa) and Gram-positive (Staphylococcus aureus) bacteria can be loaded with cationic 70-nm gold nanoparticles and that subsequent laser illumination results in VNB formation inside the biofilms. In all types of biofilms tested, VNB formation leads to substantial local biofilm disruption, increasing tobramycin efficacy up to 1-3 orders of magnitude depending on the organism and treatment conditions. Altogether, our results support the potential of laser-induced VNBs as a new approach to disrupt biofilms of a broad range of organisms, resulting in improved antibiotic diffusion and more effective biofilm eradication.
Keyphrases
- candida albicans
- gram negative
- pseudomonas aeruginosa
- biofilm formation
- staphylococcus aureus
- multidrug resistant
- gold nanoparticles
- cystic fibrosis
- acinetobacter baumannii
- drug delivery
- photodynamic therapy
- high resolution
- escherichia coli
- risk assessment
- drug resistant
- quantum dots
- methicillin resistant staphylococcus aureus
- energy transfer
- climate change
- walled carbon nanotubes