<i>Mycobacterium abscessus</i> biofilms produce an extracellular matrix and have a distinct mycolic acid profile.

ABSTRACT: A non-tuberculous mycobacterium, Mycobacterium abscessus is an emerging opportunistic pathogen associated with difficult to treat pulmonary infections, particularly in patients suffering from cystic fibrosis. It is capable of forming biofilms in vitro that result in an increase of already high levels of antibiotic resistance in this bacterium. Evidence that M. abscessus forms biofilm-like microcolonies in patient lungs and on medical devices further implicated the need to investigate this biofilm in detail. Therefore, in this study we characterized the M. abscessus pellicular biofilm, formed on a liquid-air interface, by studying its molecular composition, and its transcriptional profile in comparison to planktonic cells. Using scanning electron micrographs and

SUBMITTER: Dokic A 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8066798 | biostudies-literature | 2021 Dec

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature