Investigation of adherence of candida species to polymer surfaces

Biofilms which serve as a protective cover for microorganisms, live with a self-produced organic matrix onto a living or non-living surface, lead to very serious infections in immunocompromised patients that were having a permanent medical device or catheter and define microorganism community which have slippery property can be found on many living and inanimate surfaces such as prostheses, lenses, catheters, stents, artificial heart valves, pacemakers, breast implants, kidney stones, lung tissue. One of the most well-known of these microorganisms, which can increase treatment costs severely by serious infections, is Candida species, which are members of the mouth, digestive tract, vagina mucosa, and permanent microflora of the skin. Investigation of the interaction of material surfaces with microorganisms is of great importance in order to prevent infection-based diseases of microbial origin. The aim of this study is to investigate adhesion behavior of Candida species which are known as opportunistic pathogens in the medical field and the main cause of systemic fungal infections on ethylene vinyl acetate copolymer (EVA-12) and polypropylene homopolymer (PP) and EVA-PP blend polymeric surfaces and to associate with surface properties. Polymeric surfaces having different surface roughness were synthesized using the dip coating technique to evaluate the adhesion of Candida species to polymeric surfaces. Surface characterization of polymeric surfaces was performed by optical microscope, profilometer, scanning electron microscope (SEM), contact angle measurements and surface free energy analysis. The surface coverage ratio of the polymeric surfaces occupied by Candida species was determined using the Image J image analysis program.