Candida albicans biofilms on titanium discs with different surface treatments

Little information is available on the formation of biofilms on implant surfaces with different surface treatments and their resistance to conventional antimicrobial therapy is not clear. Objective: to determine the effect of different surface treatments of titanium discs on the susceptibility of Candida albicans biofilms to amphotericin B and to compare with that of planktonic C. albicans. Methods: Commercially pure titanium (CP-Ti) rods were cut into small discs (12 mm in diameter and 1 mm in thickness) and the discs were equally divided into three groups; Group A received no surface treatment, Group B was sandblasted with 250 µm aluminum oxide, and Group C was sandblasted and then etched with 2% hydrofluoric acid + 10% nitric acid for 3 minutes. To determine the MIC of the planktonic cells, a modified method of the NCCLS (M27-A) was employed. The effect of amphoterican B on C. albicans biofilm grown on different Ti discs was determined by counting colony forming units (CFU) at different concentrations of antifungal used. The experiment was performed in duplicate on three separate occasions. Results: Group A, B and C showed almost 100% reduction in CFU at 8 µg/mL, which was found to be 16 times higher than their planktonic counterpart (0.5 µg/mL). No significant difference in antifungal resistance was found between the three groups. Conclusions: Antifungal resistance of C. albicans biofilms formed on CP-Ti discs were higher than their planktonic counterpart and antifungal resistance did not appear to be affected by different surface treatments of the titanium discs.