Figure 1.

Typical illustration of biofilm formation. The process begins with reversible adhesion of the planktonic cells (brown ovals) with subsequent attachment to the surface (black) (a). The bacteria then form a monolayer and attach irreversibly, inducing an extracellular matrix formation (b). Later, a microcolony is formed where multilayers appear (c). In the following stages, the biofilm matures, forming characteristic structures due to polysaccharides existence (d). At the final step, some cells start to detach and the biofilm (yellow) disperses (e) [2].