Abstract
Antibiotic resistance continues to challenge the medical field worldwide, and the need for alternative methods to combat antibiotic resistance is imperative. Plant lectins have shown promising results as a natural anti-biofilm agent by disrupting the biofilm’s ability to adhere by binding to specific monosaccharides in the extracellular polymeric substance (EPS). This study aimed to use the plant lectins, Con A and WGA, to agglutinate to the EPS and inhibit biofilm formation in antibiotic-resistant pathogens like Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Staphylococcus epidermidis, and Stenotrophomonas maltophilia. Initially, minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) assays were performed, and the final concentration determined was based on a study investigating the impact of plant lectins on biofilm formation for Streptococcus mutans (0.4 mg/mL). 96-well biofilm assays were statistically significant for P. aeruginosa with Con A treatment and S. mutans with WGA treatment. These results indicate that P. aeruginosa treated with Con A reduces the biofilm’s ability to adhere, because of the high volume of mannose-specific monosaccharides in its EPS. Additionally, results for S. mutans indicate that WGA can inhibit the biofilm’s adhesion, because of the presence of N-acetylglucosamine monosaccharides in the EPS. Future research is needed to confirm if plant lectins are a natural anti-biofilm agent.