title: Evaluation of biofilm-forming capacity of Moraxella bovis, the primary causative agent of infectious bovine keratoconjunctivitis.
abstract: The difficulties in preventing and treating infectious bovine keratoconjunctivitis (IBK) and the consequent impact on the cattle industry worldwide emphasize the need to better understand this infectious process along with the biology of Moraxella bovis, its primary causative agent. Although there is increasing evidence that bacterial biofilms participate in a variety of ocular infections by direct biofilm formation on the surfaces of the eye, IBK has not been considered as a biofilm-based disease so far, and even more, no information is currently available regarding the ability of M. bovis to adopt a biofilm lifestyle. In the present research, we demonstrated the capacity of M. bovis clinical isolates and reference strains to form biofilms on different abiotic surfaces and culture conditions, and provided qualitative and quantitative information on the biofilm growth and architecture of mature biofilms. In addition, our data indicated that the type IV pili play a critical role in the biofilm formation in vitro. Most significantly, we proved that through exposure to MgCl2 type IV pili are removed from the cell surface, not only preventing M. bovis biofilm formation but also disassembling preformed biofilms. These results could constitute a new approach in the understanding of M. bovis colonization process in cattle eye and/or nasal cavity, and may aid in the development of future antimicrobial strategies for the control of IBK.
authors.affiliation: Centro de Investigación y Desarrollo en Fermentaciones Industriales (CINDEFI, CONICET-CCT-La Plata), Facultad de Ciencias Exactas, Universidad Nacional de La Plata, La Plata, Argentina.
authors.forename: Claudia
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Prieto
authors.forename: Diego Omar
authors.initials: DO
authors.lastname: Serra
authors.forename: Pablo
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Martina
authors.forename: Melisa
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Jacobs
authors.forename: Alejandra
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Bosch
authors.forename: Osvaldo M
authors.initials: OM
authors.lastname: Yantorno
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D018441:Biofilms; D002417:Cattle; D002418:Cattle Diseases / Q000382:microbiology*; D007639:Keratoconjunctivitis, Infectious / Q000382:microbiology*; D016955:Moraxella bovis / Q000302:isolation & purification / Q000502:physiology*; D045828:Moraxellaceae Infections / Q000382:microbiology / Q000662:veterinary*
keywords: Antibiotic resistance; Biofilm; Disassembling agents; Infectious bovine keratoconjunctivitis; Moraxella bovis; Type IV pili