Bacterial Survival: Osmotic Stress and Biofilm Formation

Most bacteria in nature exist not as free-living, planktonic cells but within biofilms, structured communities attached to biotic or abiotic surfaces and embedded in a complex extracellular matrix. This mode of life confers a decisive survival advantage: biofilms protect resident cells from desiccation, nutrient limitation, host immune defenses, antimicrobial exposure, and fluctuating physicochemical conditions such as osmotic stress. Rather than focusing on the mechanics of biofilm assembly itself, this Research Topic asks a more targeted question: how does biofilm formation function as a survival strategy, and what does it buy the bacterial cell that a planktonic lifestyle cannot?We welcome contributions that connect biofilm architecture, composition, or regulation directly to a measurable survival, persistence, or fitness outcome. This includes biofilms as a refuge against osmotic and other abiotic stresses, as a platform for antimicrobial tolerance and resistance, and as a foothold enabling colonization of hosts, surfaces, or ecological niches, including plant-associated and agricultural settings. Studies that simply characterize biofilm formation without addressing its survival consequences fall outside the scope of this Topic.We welcome original research articles, reviews, and short communications addressing themes including, but not limited to:• Biofilm formation as a protective response to osmotic and other environmental stresses• Role of the extracellular polymeric substance (EPS) matrix in bacterial protection and persistence• Biofilms as a driver of antimicrobial tolerance and resistance• Biofilm-mediated survival in host colonization and pathogenesis• Bacteria–plant biofilm interactions and their role in colonization and persistence, including relevance to citrus greening and other agricultural pathosystems• Quorum sensing and cell–cell communication as regulators of survival-oriented biofilm behavior• Ecological and environmental perspectives on biofilm-based persistence• Anti-biofilm strategies that target the survival advantage conferred by biofilms Topic editors: Ben Fan, Anto Budiharjo, Montserrat Argandoña Source: https://www.frontiersin.org/research-topics/82589/bacterial-survival-osmotic-stress-and-biofilm-formation