Microbe Manor

After an infection, surfaces on the body can become the microbial equivalent of a building site. Some microbes have the ability to form biofilm: they stick to a surface and produce a structural material. Pictured are close ups – with increasing zoom from left to right – that show the microscopic holes where bugs can hide. These cultures are from bacteria that cause middle ear infection which were grown in a weak antibiotic solution. Biofilm shields the bacteria from antibiotics because subsequently these same cultures were able to withstand a lethal dose. The bugs are probably also sheltered from the immune system which means that later when conditions improve, they can emerge from the biofilm and start growing again. This is why young children often get recurrent ear infections. Researchers concluded that incomplete antibiotic treatment is likely to cause long-term problems, so doctors no longer treat earache with antibiotics.

Written by Julie Webb

Julie Webb

Writer

Julie began her career as a researcher in genetics. In 2000 she won a Wellcome Trust award for her work on a collaborative science drama, staged at the Edinburgh Festival. She now works as a freelance science writer and communicator.

• Adapted from image by Paul Webster and colleagues
• Oak Crest Institute of Science, USA
• Originally published under a Creative Commons Licence (BY 4.0)
• Research published in PLOS One, July 2014