Diverse surface properties reveal that substratum roughness affects fungal spore binding

Kathryn A Whitehead; Christopher M Liauw; Stephen Lynch; Mohamed El Mohtadi; Mohsin Amin; Andrea Preuss; Ted Deisenroth; Joanna Verran

doi:10.1016/j.isci.2021.102333

Diverse surface properties reveal that substratum roughness affects fungal spore binding

iScience. 2021 Mar 19;24(4):102333. doi: 10.1016/j.isci.2021.102333. eCollection 2021 Apr 23.

Authors

Kathryn A Whitehead¹, Christopher M Liauw¹, Stephen Lynch², Mohamed El Mohtadi³, Mohsin Amin¹, Andrea Preuss⁴, Ted Deisenroth⁴, Joanna Verran²

Affiliations

¹ Microbiology at Interfaces, Manchester Metropolitan University, Manchester M15GD, UK.
² Faculty of Science and Engineering, Manchester Metropolitan University, Manchester M15GD, UK.
³ Department of Biology, Edge Hill University, Ormskirk, Lancashire, L394QP, UK.
⁴ Research Centre, Germany.

Abstract

Binding to surfaces by fungal spores is a prerequisite to biofilm formation. The interactions of polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE), glass, and silicon with three fungal spores, of differing shapes and sizes (Aspergillus niger 1957, Aspergillus niger 1988, and Aureobasidium pullulans), were investigated. A multifractal analysis was conducted to provide quantitative measures of density, dispersion, and clustering of spores on the surfaces. The PTFE, glass, and silicon surfaces presented a range of surface topographies and wettabilities. PTFE was the roughest and most non-wettable surface, whereas silicon was the opposite in terms of both these aspects. The A. niger species were more non-wettable than A. pullulans. Overall, A. niger 1957 attached in higher numbers to PTFE, whereas A. niger 1988 and A. pullulans bound in highest numbers to glass. The results of this work demonstrated that the overall substratum surface roughness influenced spore binding rather than the physicochemical or chemical properties of surfaces or spores.

Keywords: Microbiofilms; Surface Treatment.