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Biofilms: Flow disrupts communication

Surface topography and fluid flow combine to modify quorum sensing communication in bacterial biofilms, changing the way we think about the interaction of biofilms with external physical forces and the implications for persistence in chronic infections and industrial fouling.

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Figure 1: Influence of flow and channel-wall topology on diffusible-signal-mediated QS in bacterial biofilms.

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Stoodley, P. Biofilms: Flow disrupts communication. Nat Microbiol 1, 15012 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1038/nmicrobiol.2015.12

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