The role of pili in the attachment of pseudomonas aeruginosa to unworn hydrogel contact lenses

Abstract

Contamination of contact lenses is thought to increase the risk of infectious keratins, yet factors promoting attachment of bacteria to contact lenses are not fully understood. It has been suggested that strains of Pseudomonas aeruginosa attach to mucosal surfaces via pili which are appendages found on some strains. This study investigated the role of pili and the effect of incubation time on the attachment of P. aeruginosa to 20 unworn hydrogel lenses representative of each of the four FDA categories. Ten lenses were incubated for 15 minutes and another ten for 180 minutes. Lenses were incubated with either PAK+ P. aeruginosa which possessed pili or its isogenic mutant pair, PAK-, which was..