Cultures were inoculated with approximately 104 CFU/mL of each strain and incubated under normal conditions. At 6 h, SE1457ΔsaeRS and SE1457 had log CFU/mL counts of 8.2 of and 8.4, respectively. CFU counts were also similar at 12 h post-inoculation, with log CFU/mL counts of 8.1 and 8.6 for SE1457ΔsaeRS and SE1457 respectively. Selleck INCB024360 However, after 24 h, SE1457ΔsaeRS cultures had a lower CFU count (8.3 log CFU/mL) compared to the wild-type strain (9.7 log CFU/mL) (P = 0.002) (Figure 5A). Figure 5 Viability of S. epidermidis 1457 in biofilms

and the planktonic state. (A) CFU counts of SE1457ΔsaeRS and SE1457. After 0, 6, 12, and 24 h of incubation, CFUs for SE1457 and SE1457ΔsaeRS cultures were calculated using serial dilutions of each sample plated on 6 agar plates. (B) CLSM images of S. epidermidis biofilms. IWR-1 mw SE1457 and SE1457ΔsaeRS were incubated in glass-bottomed cell culture

dishes. After incubation at 37°C for 24 h, SE1457ΔsaeRS and SE1457 cells in biofilms were stained with LIVE/DEAD reagents that indicate viable cells by green fluorescence (SYTO9) and dead cells by red fluorescence (PI). Results depict a stack of images taken at approximately 0.3 μm depth increments and represent one of the three experiments. Fluorescence intensities were quantified using ImageJ software. WT, SE1457; SAE, SE1457ΔsaeRS. The viability of SE1457ΔsaeRS and the wild-type strain in 24 h biofilm was determined by confocal laser buy GDC-0973 scanning microscopy (CLSM) with LIVE/DEAD staining [34]. More dead cells were observed in the SE1457ΔsaeRS biofilm compared to the wild-type strain (Figure 5B). Effect of saeRS deletion on eDNA release from S. epidermidis Extracellular DNA is an important component of the S. epidermidis biofilm matrix [7, 35], and its relative concentration in 24 h biofilms formed by SE1457,

SE1457ΔsaeRS and SE1457saec was measured utilizing qPCR for gyrA, lysA, serp0306, and leuA [19, 28]. Extracellular DNA concentrations were increased in the SE1457ΔsaeRS biofilms compared to the complementation strain and the wild-type strain (Figure 6). Figure 6 Quantification of eDNA in SE1457 ΔsaeRS , SE1457, and SE1457 saec filipin biofilms. eDNA was extracted from the unwashed 24 h biofilms of SE1457ΔsaeRS (white bars), SE1457 (black bars), and SE1457saec (gray bars). The eDNA in each biofilm was quantified by qPCR using primers specific for gyrA, serp0306, lysA, and leuA [19, 28]. The quantity of eDNA was calculated as follows: total eDNA (ng)/relative OD600. Results represent the mean ± SD of three independent experiments. WT, SE1457; SAE, SE1457ΔsaeRS; SAEC, SE1457saec. When DNase I (28 U/200 μL/well) was added prior to biofilm formation, the biomass of the SE1457ΔsaeRS biofilms was decreased by 4-fold (P < 0.05); in contrast, the biomasses of SE1457 and SE1457saec biofilms were decreased by 1.5-fold (Figure 1).