Document Type
Conference Paper
Publication Date
9-2-2026
Abstract
Bacterial biofilms are surface-attached communities of bacteria that are notoriously difficult to fully eradicate. This is especially a problem in the healthcare field, as Staphylococcus epidermidis, a commensal bacteria normally present on human skin, can enter the bloodstream through biofilms on medical devices and cause infections. This research project aims to discover how to best eliminate bacterial biofilms. Biofilms were first grown on stainless steel discs, in both aerobic and anaerobic conditions. After baselines were established, treatments of papain, chlorhexidine digluconate, or sodium fluoride were applied to hydrated 5-day biofilms. After chlorhexidine digluconate was proven to be effective, new 1 day biofilms were treated with it at different concentrations. Preliminary results suggest that anaerobically formed biofilms were more susceptible to reduction by chlorhexidine digluconate than aerobically formed biofilms. Notably, Minimum Inhibitory Concentration (MIC) of chlorhexidine digluconate against S. epidermidis was 0.25% under both aerobic and anaerobic conditions, suggesting additional factors that were promoting biofilm removal by chlorhexidine digluconate. Additional experiments must be run to determine the true cause of the reduced biomass in treated anaerobic biofilms, compared to aerobic biofilms given the same treatment.
Keywords
Biofilms, S. epidermidis, Staphylococcus epidermidis, removal, biofilm removal
Disciplines
Biology | Medical Microbiology
eCommons Citation
Watson, Alexander, "Removal Strategies for Staphylococcus epidermidis Biofilms" (2026). Research from the Berry Summer Thesis Institute, 2026. 5.
https://ecommons.udayton.edu/uhp_bsti_2026/5
Comments
I would like to express my sincere thanks to Dr. Yvonne Sun and the Sun Lab for their support and assistance this summer. I would also like to thank the Berry Family for their generous donation and support that allowed me to conduct this research project. Additionally, I would like to thank the University of Dayton Honors Program and Berry Summer Thesis Institute staff, including program director Dr. Dorian Borbonus, as well as my fellow Berry Summer Thesis Institute cohort members for their constant support and excitement towards my project. Lastly, I would like to thank my family for their unconditional love and support throughout the program.