Fig 1. Growth of H. influenzae in dual- and triple-species co-cultures with S. pneumoniae and M. catarrhalis after 18 h.

Growth in (A) planktonic and (B) biofilm state of H. influenzae middle ear isolate 86-028NP and laboratory strain Rd KW20 in mono-culture, in co-culture with S. pneumoniae strain 11, in co-culture with M. catarrhalis strain QC, and in triple-species co-culture with S. pneumoniae 11 and M. catarrhalis QC after 18h is represented as CFU/mL. * p<0.05, *** p<0.001.