Biofilms in the body can be found on many natural surfaces such as skin, teeth, mucus lining your gut and on implanted devices.
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Biofilms on medical implants
Biofilms on medical implants are a major concern. 80% of all bacterial infections in humans have the capacity to grow as biofilms. Medical implants are devices placed inside or outside the human body that replace or support a damaged biological structure. They can be made from a number of different materials including plastic, metal and […]
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Teeth
When you haven’t brushed your teeth recently and they feel a bit fuzzy – that’s bacteria! A sticky layer of lots of different bacteria all growing together on your teeth is called ‘plaque’. Plaque is a type of biofilm. We all have lots of bacteria naturally living on our teeth and some plaque is part […]
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The gallbladder
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The lungs
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The gut
The gastrointestinal tract, commonly called the gut, is home to lots of microorganisms with intertwined, but not identical, lifestyles: as isolated cells (planktonic), as biofilms, and in biofilm-dispersed forms.
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Skin
The microbes on human skin (its microbiome) plays an important role in both health and disease. Biofilms are a critical element in certain skin diseases. Skin-associated microbe include: Staphylococcus epidermidis– can cause wound infections, boils, sinus infections, endocarditis and other inflammations. It can survive for a long time in ‘hiding places’ in the body, where it […]