Biofilm formation by the oral pioneer colonizer Streptococcus gordonii: an experimental and numerical study.
For decades, extensive research efforts have been conducted to improve the functionality and stability of implants. Especially in dentistry, implant treatment has become a standard medical practice. The treatment restores full dental functionality, helping patients to maintain high quality of life. However, about 10% of the patients suffer from early and late device failure due to peri-implantitis, an inflammatory disease of the tissues surrounding the implant. Peri-implantitis is caused by progressive microbial colonization of the device surface and the formation of microbial communities, so-called biofilms. This infection can ultimately lead to implant failure. The causative agents for the inflammatory disease, periodontal pathogenic biofilms, have already been extensively studied, but are still not completely understood. As numerical simulations will have the potential to predict oral biofilm formation precisely in the future, for the first time, this study aimed to analyze Streptococcus gordonii biofilms by combining experimental studies and numerical simulation. The study demonstrated that numerical simulation was able to precisely model the influence of different nutrient concentration and spatial distribution of active and inactive biomass of the biofilm in comparison with the experimental data. This model may provide a less time-consuming method for the future investigation of any bacterial biofilm.
Department of Prosthetic Dentistry and Biomedical Materials Science, Hanover Medical School, Hannover 30625, Germany.
Henryke
H
Rath
Institute of Fluid Mechanics and Environmental Physics in Civil Engineering, Leibniz Universität Hannover, Hannover 30167, Germany.
Dianlei
D
Feng
Institute of Fluid Mechanics and Environmental Physics in Civil Engineering, Leibniz Universität Hannover, Hannover 30167, Germany.
Insa
I
Neuweiler
Department of Prosthetic Dentistry and Biomedical Materials Science, Hanover Medical School, Hannover 30625, Germany.
Nico S
NS
Stumpp
Institute of Mechanics and Computational Mechanics, Leibniz Universität Hannover, Hannover 30167, Germany.
Udo
U
Nackenhorst
Department of Prosthetic Dentistry and Biomedical Materials Science, Hanover Medical School, Hannover 30625, Germany.
Meike
M
Stiesch
D018441:Biofilms; D015921:Dental Implants / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000382:microbiology*; D006801:Humans; D009055:Mouth / Q000382:microbiology*; D013290:Streptococcal Infections / Q000209:etiology / Q000382:microbiology*; D054773:Streptococcus gordonii / Q000235:genetics / Q000254:growth & development / Q000502:physiology*
D015921:Dental Implants
Streptococcus gordonii; bacterial biofilm; flow chamber system; implant-associated infection; model validation; numerical simulation