An Integrated Microsystem for Real-Time Detection and Threshold-Activated Treatment of Bacterial Biofilms

Area of Science:

• Biomedical Engineering
• Microfluidics
• Biosensing

Background:

• Bacterial biofilms on medical implants cause persistent infections, often necessitating high antibiotic doses and contributing to resistance.
• Current methods for detecting and treating biofilm infections are often delayed, leading to treatment challenges and the rise of antibiotic resistance.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop and demonstrate a novel, integrated system for the real-time detection and in situ treatment of bacterial biofilms.
• To create a threshold-activated feedback mechanism for initiating biofilm treatment based on impedance sensing.

Main Methods:

• Developed a microfluidic flow cell with an integrated impedance sensor array for monitoring biofilm growth.
• Utilized fractional relative change (FRC) in absolute impedance to quantify biofilm formation.
• Implemented a custom program to trigger bioelectric effect (BE) treatment upon reaching a predefined biofilm growth threshold.

Main Results:

• Successfully monitored Escherichia coli biofilm growth in real-time using impedimetric sensing.
• Demonstrated threshold-activated BE treatment, achieving approximately 74.8% reduction in average biofilm surface coverage compared to controls.
• Showcased the system's capability for real-time monitoring and autonomous treatment initiation.

Conclusions:

• The developed smart microsystem offers a promising platform for integrated biofilm sensing and treatment.
• This technology has the potential for future autonomous biosensors for early biofilm detection and in situ treatment on medical implants.
• The bioelectric effect shows efficacy in reducing established biofilms, offering an alternative to conventional antibiotic treatments.