Synthetic Ellagic Acid Glycosides Inhibit Early Stage Adhesion of Streptococcus agalactiae Biofilms as Observed by Scanning Electron Microscopy

Abstract

Ellagic acid derivatives possess antimicrobial and antibiofilm properties across a wide-range of microbial pathogens. Due to their poor solubility and ambident reactivity it is challenging to synthesize, purify, and characterize the activity of ellagic acid glycosides. In this study, we have synthesized three ellagic acid glycoconjugates and evaluated their antimicrobial and antibiofilm activity in Streptococcus agalactiae (Group B Streptococcus, GBS). Their significant impacts on biofilm formation were examined via SEM to reveal early-stage inhibition of cellular adhesion. Additionally, the synthetic glycosides were evaluated against five of the six ESKAPE pathogens and two fungal pathogens. These studies reveal that the ellagic acid glycosides possess inhibitory effects on the growth of gram-negative pathogens.

Keywords: ESKAPE pathogens; Streptococcus agalactiae; antibiofilm activity; ellagic acid glycosides; scanning electron microscopy.