Effect of negative pressure on growth, secretion and biofilm formation of Staphylococcus aureus

Negative pressure wound therapy (NPWT) has gained popularity in the management of contaminated wounds as an effective physical therapy, although its influence on the bacteria in the wounds remains unclear. In this study, we attempted to explore the effect of negative pressure conditions on Staphylococcus aureus, the most frequently isolated pathogen during wound infection. S. aureus was cultured in Luria–Bertani medium at subatmospheric pressure of −125 mmHg for 24 h, with the bacteria grown at ambient pressure as the control. The application of negative pressure was found to slow down the growth rate and inhibit biofilm development of S. aureus, which was confirmed by static biofilm assays. Furthermore, decreases in the total amount of virulence factors and biofilm components were observed, including α-hemolysin, extracellular adherence protein, polysaccharide intercellular adhesin and extracellular DNA. With quantitative RT-PCR analysis, we also revealed a significant inhibition in the transcription of virulence and regulatory genes related to wound infections and bacterial biofilms. Together, these findings indicated that negative pressure could inhibit the growth, virulence and biofilm formation of S. aureus. A topical subatmospheric pressure condition, such as NPWT, may be a potential antivirulence and antibiofilm strategy in the field of wound care.