title: Efficacy of acidic and basic electrolyzed water in eradicating  Staphylococcus aureus  biofilm.
abstract: Staphylococcus aureus  is a major pathogen. It can form biofilm on the surfaces of medical devices and food equipment, which makes it more difficult to eradicate. To develop a novel method to eradicate S. aureus biofilm, the effects of electrolyzed water on removing and killing S. aureus biofilm were investigated in this study. By using a biofilm biomass assay with safranin staining and visualization of biofilm architecture with scanning electron microscopy, it was shown that basic electrolyzed water (BEW) could effectively remove established biofilm. The pH of electrolyzed water affected removal efficacy. Using a biofilm viability assay with 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide staining, acidic electrolyzed water (AEW) efficiently killed biofilm-imbedded S. aureus. The available chlorine in AEW may be a main contributing factor for bactericidal activity. Additionally, BEW had a removal efficacy for S. aureus biofilm equivalent to 2% NaOH, and AEW had a bactericidal capability for S. aureus in biofilm equivalent to 2% HCl. These data suggested that AEW and BEW could be applied as a bactericide and removing agent for S. aureus in biofilm, respectively.
authors.affiliation: College of Food Science and Nutritional Engineering, China Agricultural University, Beijing 100083, People's Republic of China.
authors.forename: Ji-Lu
authors.initials: JL
authors.lastname: Sun
authors.forename: Shao-Kang
authors.initials: SK
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.forename: Jing-Yu
authors.initials: JY
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.forename: Bei-Zhong
authors.initials: BZ
authors.lastname: Han
mesh_terms: D018441:Biofilms / Q000254:growth & development*; D004203:Disinfection / Q000379:methods*; D004572:Electrolysis / Q000379:methods*; D006863:Hydrogen-Ion Concentration; D013211:Staphylococcus aureus / Q000254:growth & development / Q000502:physiology* / Q000648:ultrastructure