Microbial repellence properties of engineered spider silk coatings prevent biofilm formation of opportunistic bacterial strains

Bacterial infections are well recognised to be one of the most important current public health problems. Inhibiting adhesion of microbes on biomaterials is one approach for preventing inflammation. Coatings made of recombinant spider silk proteins based on the consensus sequence of Araneus diadematus dragline silk fibroin 4 have previously shown microbe-repellent properties. Concerning silicone implants, it has been further shown that spider silk coatings are effective in lowering the risk of capsular fibrosis. Here, microbial repellence tests using four opportunistic infection-related strains revealed additional insights into the microbe-repellent properties of spider silk-coated implants, exemplarily shown for silicone surfaces. Graphic

Automated summary

Spider silk coatings based on the consensus sequence of Araneus diadematus dragline silk fibroin 4 have shown microbe-repellent properties, which can effectively prevent bacterial infections and reduce the risk of capsular fibrosis in silicone implants.