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Updated: Jul 3, 2026

In Vitro and In Vivo Model to Study Bacterial Adhesion to the Vessel Wall Under Flow Conditions
Published on: June 11, 2015
Reduced bacterial adhesion to fibrinogen-coated substrates via nitric oxide release
Gregory W Charville1, Evan M Hetrick, Carri B Geer
1Department of Chemistry, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Caudill and Kenan Laboratories, CB 3290, Chapel Hill, NC 27599-3290, USA.
Abstract:
The ability of nitric oxide (NO)-releasing xerogels to reduce fibrinogen-mediated adhesion of Staphylococcus aureus, Staphylococcus epidermidis, and Escherichia coli is described. A negative correlation was observed between NO surface flux and bacterial adhesion for each species tested. For S. aureus and E. coli, reduced adhesion correlated directly with NO flux from 0 to 30 pmol cm(-2)s(-1). A similar dependence for S. epidermidis was evident from 18 to 30 pmol cm(-2)s(-1). At a NO flux of 30 pmol cm(-2)s(-1), surface coverage of S. aureus, S. epidermidis, and E. coli was reduced by 96, 48, and 88%, respectively, compared to non-NO-releasing controls. Polymeric NO release was thus demonstrated to be an effective approach for significantly reducing fibrinogen-mediated adhesion of both gram-positive and gram-negative bacteria in vitro, thereby illustrating the advantage of active NO release as a strategy for inhibiting bacterial adhesion in the presence of pre-adsorbed protein.
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