Antimicrobial Activity of the Peptide C14R Against Ab Initio Growing and Preformed Biofilms of , and .

Biofilms are the predominant lifeforms of microorganisms, contributing to over 80% of infections, including those caused by species like , and . These species form biofilms on medical devices, making infections challenging to treat, especially with the rise in drug-resistant strains. infections, particularly hospital-acquired ones, are a significant health threat due to their resistance to antifungals and the risk of developing systemic infections (i.e., sepsis). We have previously shown that C14R reduces the viability of and , but not of . Here, we show that C14R not only inhibits viability by pore formation, shown in a resazurin reduction assay, and in a and fluorescence-based permeabilization assay, but it also halts biofilm maturation and significantly reduces the biomass of preformed biofilms by over 70%. These findings suggest C14R could be an effective option for treating severe fungal infections, offering a potential new treatment approach for biofilm-related diseases. Further research is needed to fully understand its biofilm dispersal potential and to optimize its use for future applications as an antifungal in clinical settings.