Nithyanand Paramasivam, Boya Bharath Reddy, Lee Jin-Hyung, Lee Jintae
School of Chemical Engineering, Yeungnam University, Gyeongsan, Republic of Korea.
Microb Biotechnol. 2025 Aug;18(8):e70218. doi: 10.1111/1751-7915.70218.
Polymicrobial biofilms are a conglomeration of diverse microbial consortia encased in a self-produced exopolysaccharide layer that forms on any biotic or abiotic surface. They are more resilient and persistent due to their enhanced drug resistance compared to monospecies biofilms, making it more difficult to eliminate using standard antimicrobial therapies. The present review discusses various inter- and intra-kingdom interactions taking place in polymicrobial biofilms and accounts for the various underlying drug resistance mechanisms in this complex and heterogeneous niche. In addition, this review provides insights into developing new diagnostic approaches by exploiting metabolites and byproducts produced by drug-resistant pathogens and other microorganisms in polymicrobial biofilms. As drug resistance is an ever-evolving mechanism in polymicrobial biofilms, synergistic combinations of natural products and antibiotics alone are not a panacea for eradicating these drug-resistant polymicrobial biofilms. Therefore, this review summarises both chemical and physical measures undertaken to combat these drug-resistant biofilms and stresses the need to employ 'omics' approaches, gene editing technologies and the integration of artificial intelligence/machine learning tools as future perspectives to eradicate these complex biofilms.
多微生物生物膜是多种微生物群落的聚集体，包裹在自生的胞外多糖层中，形成于任何生物或非生物表面。与单一物种生物膜相比，它们具有更强的耐药性，因此更具弹性和持久性，使得使用标准抗菌疗法更难消除。本综述讨论了多微生物生物膜中发生的各种界间和界内相互作用，并阐述了这个复杂且异质生态位中各种潜在的耐药机制。此外，本综述还介绍了通过利用多微生物生物膜中耐药病原体和其他微生物产生的代谢物和副产物来开发新诊断方法的见解。由于耐药性是多微生物生物膜中不断演变的机制，仅靠天然产物和抗生素的协同组合并非根除这些耐药多微生物生物膜的万灵药。因此，本综述总结了对抗这些耐药生物膜所采取的化学和物理措施，并强调需要采用“组学”方法、基因编辑技术以及整合人工智能/机器学习工具，作为根除这些复杂生物膜的未来方向。
