Evaluation of environmental scanning electron microscopy for analysis of Proteus mirabilis crystalline biofilms in situ on urinary catheters.
FEMS Microbiol Lett
; 355(1): 20-7, 2014 Jun.
Article
em En
| MEDLINE
| ID: mdl-24786314
ABSTRACT
Proteus mirabilis is a common cause of catheter-associated urinary tract infections and frequently leads to blockage of catheters due to crystalline biofilm formation. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) has proven to be a valuable tool in the study of these unusual biofilms, but entails laborious sample preparation that can introduce artefacts, undermining the investigation of biofilm development. In contrast, environmental scanning electron microscopy (ESEM) permits imaging of unprocessed, fully hydrated samples, which may provide much insight into the development of P. mirabilis biofilms. Here, we evaluate the utility of ESEM for the study of P. mirabilis crystalline biofilms in situ, on urinary catheters. In doing so, we compare this to commonly used conventional SEM approaches for sample preparation and imaging. Overall, ESEM provided excellent resolution of biofilms formed on urinary catheters and revealed structures not observed in standard SEM imaging or previously described in other studies of these biofilms. In addition, we show that energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS) may be employed in conjunction with ESEM to provide information regarding the elemental composition of crystalline structures and demonstrate the potential for ESEM in combination with EDS to constitute a useful tool in exploring the mechanisms underpinning crystalline biofilm formation.
Palavras-chave
Texto completo:
1
Coleções:
01-internacional
Base de dados:
MEDLINE
Assunto principal:
Proteus mirabilis
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Microscopia Eletrônica de Varredura
/
Biofilmes
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Cateteres Urinários
Tipo de estudo:
Evaluation_studies
Idioma:
En
Revista:
FEMS Microbiol Lett
Ano de publicação:
2014
Tipo de documento:
Article
País de afiliação:
Reino Unido