Progress of research on biofilm formation and treatment of Escherichia coli

The biofilm is a major pathogenic factor for many types of chronic infections, and Escherichia coli biofilm plays an important role in community-acquired infection and hospital-acquired infection and is one of common causes of urinary tract infection (UTI). The quorum sensing (QS) system of E. coli biofilm can mediate intercellular information exchange and thus regulate the whole community to adapt to the environmental changes, and the extracellular matrix-derived complex resistance mechanisms lead to a certain degree of bacterial resistance to antimicrobial drugs and resistance to immune system, which then makes it difficult for the conventional antimicrobial drugs to effectively eradicate the biofilm-associated infections. The article focuses on the formation of E. coli biofilm, drug resistance mechanisms and treatment aspects and summarizes the progress of research on the novel substitutive therapies against the E. coli biofilms that were developed in recent years, such as phytochemicals, nanomaterials, probiotics and phage therapy, so as to provide theoretical bases for the clinical treatment and the development of novel drug therapies against the E. coli biofilm.