Bertran I Forga Xavier, Hong Yaoqin, Fairfull-Smith Kathryn E, Qin Jilong, Totsika Makrina
Centre for Immunity and Infection Control, School of Biomedical Sciences, Queensland University of Technology, Brisbane, Queensland, Australia.
Max Planck Queensland Centre, Queensland University of Technology, Brisbane, Queensland, Australia.
Microbiol Spectr. 2025 Sep 16:e0223425. doi: 10.1128/spectrum.02234-25.
Biofilm dispersal agents, like nitric oxide (NO), restore antimicrobial effectiveness against biofilm infections by inducing bacteria to shift from a biofilm to a planktonic state, thereby overcoming the antimicrobial tolerance typically associated with biofilms. Sodium nitroprusside (SNP) is a widely used NO donor for investigating the molecular mechanisms underlying NO-mediated biofilm dispersal in the nosocomial pathogen . However, the biofilm effects of SNP are variable depending on the experimental conditions, with some studies reporting enhanced growth in both planktonic and biofilm forms instead of dispersal. These discrepancies suggest that SNP affects biofilm-residing cells beyond the release of NO. In this study, we compared SNP with another NO donor, Spermine NONOate, to systematically contrast their effects on biofilm and planktonic cultures of . We found that SNP, but not Spermine NONOate, increased the biomass of biofilms in microplate cultures. This effect was also observed when biofilm cultures were supplemented with iron. Additionally, supplementation with SNP rescued the planktonic growth of in iron-depleted media similarly to FeSO₄, suggesting that SNP may serve as an iron source. Our findings indicate that the use of SNP as an NO donor in biofilm dispersal may be compromised by its role in promoting both biofilm and planktonic growth through its iron center. Our study cautions investigators using SNP for studying NO-mediated biofilm dispersal.
Research into biofilm dispersal agent nitric oxide (NO) holds promise for treating biofilm-associated infections. Sodium nitroprusside (SNP), an NO donor widely used in antibiofilm research, has been shown in this study to enhance cell growth and biofilm formation in by acting as a source of iron. Our results suggest that SNP functions both as an NO and an iron donor, with its iron-releasing properties playing a more dominant role in promoting biofilm growth in closed culture systems. This study underscores the dual but conflicting roles of SNP in biofilm growth, which caution its future development as an NO-based therapeutic strategy for biofilm-associated infections.
生物膜分散剂，如一氧化氮（NO），通过诱导细菌从生物膜状态转变为浮游状态，恢复对生物膜感染的抗菌效果，从而克服通常与生物膜相关的抗菌耐受性。硝普钠（SNP）是一种广泛使用的NO供体，用于研究医院病原体中NO介导的生物膜分散的分子机制。然而，SNP对生物膜的影响因实验条件而异，一些研究报告称其在浮游和生物膜形式中均促进生长而非分散。这些差异表明，SNP对生物膜驻留细胞的影响超出了NO的释放。在本研究中，我们将SNP与另一种NO供体亚精胺NONOate进行比较，以系统地对比它们对生物膜和浮游培养物的影响。我们发现，SNP而非亚精胺NONOate增加了微孔板培养物中生物膜的生物量。当生物膜培养物补充铁时也观察到了这种效果。此外，补充SNP与补充FeSO₄类似，挽救了缺铁培养基中浮游菌的生长，表明SNP可能作为铁源。我们的研究结果表明，在生物膜分散中使用SNP作为NO供体可能会因其通过铁中心促进生物膜和浮游菌生长的作用而受到影响。我们的研究提醒研究人员在使用SNP研究NO介导的生物膜分散时要谨慎。
对生物膜分散剂一氧化氮（NO）的研究有望治疗生物膜相关感染。硝普钠（SNP）是一种广泛用于抗生物膜研究的NO供体，本研究表明它通过作为铁源促进细胞生长和生物膜形成。我们的结果表明，SNP既作为NO供体又作为铁供体，其释放铁的特性在封闭培养系统中促进生物膜生长方面发挥了更主导的作用。本研究强调了SNP在生物膜生长中的双重但相互矛盾的作用，这提醒其作为生物膜相关感染基于NO的治疗策略的未来发展要谨慎。
