Chronic biofilm-based infections: skewing of the immune response

JF González, MM Hahn, JS Gunn - Pathogens and disease, 2018 - academic.oup.com
Pathogens and disease, 2018academic.oup.com
Many of the deadliest bacterial diseases that plague humanity in the modern age are
caused by bacterial biofilms that produce chronic infections. However, most of our
knowledge of the host immune response comes from the study of planktonic pathogens.
While there are similarities in the host response to planktonic and biofilm bacteria, specific
immune responses toward biofilms have not been well studied; the only apparent difference
is the inability to clear the bacteria allowing the biofilm infection to become chronic. In some …
Abstract
Many of the deadliest bacterial diseases that plague humanity in the modern age are caused by bacterial biofilms that produce chronic infections. However, most of our knowledge of the host immune response comes from the study of planktonic pathogens. While there are similarities in the host response to planktonic and biofilm bacteria, specific immune responses toward biofilms have not been well studied; the only apparent difference is the inability to clear the bacteria allowing the biofilm infection to become chronic. In some cases, the biofilms skew T-cell response toward a balance that allows a stalemate between the host and the pathogen, in which the infection can become persistent. In this minireview, we will summarize well-known examples of this phenomena as well as some emerging studies that may indicate that this situation is much more common than initially thought.
Oxford University Press