Dear Colleagues,

Biofilms are almost ubiquitous in nature and can be a hurdle. Biofilms can be a challenge concerning identification, diagnosis, and treatment. In addition, biofilms can be an ideal place for the development of antibiotic resistance, especially when treatment/removal is inefficient. This is the case for many different areas, including infections in humans and animals, in industrial settings such as in the feed and food industry, and in nature, to mention a few.

Bacteria in biofilm can tolerate much higher doses of antibiotics, antiseptics, and other biocides than planktonic bacteria. Although proven efficient on planktonic bacteria, different compounds have very different efficacy when the bacteria are in a biofilm. This can be due to reduced penetration through the biofilm matrix, development of resistance in the biofilm, or neutralization by matrix components, for example. For this reason, it is important to have technology for and knowledge regarding efficient treatment/removal of biofilms in the fight to combat antibiotic resistance. In clinical settings, confocal and electron microscopy is one of the most commonly used methods to identify an infection caused by biofilm-forming microorganisms. These techniques are expensive, require specialized personnel, and are rarely available outside the university hospital environment. It is also important to combat biofilms in the feed and food environment as this could be a place for the spread of antibiotic-resistant clones.

This Special Issue will welcome all articles related to biofilms and antibiotic resistance. This includes articles on methods to detect biofilms and/or antibiotic-resistant bacteria in biofilms, treatment strategies, and studies on the role of biofilm matrix components, as well as evolution studies.

Dr. Lene Karine Vestby
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Antibiotics is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2900 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

• Antibiotic resistance
• Biofilm
• Treatment strategies
• Evolution in biofilm
• Clinical biofilm infections
• Industrial biofilms
• Gene exchange