Antimicrobial photodynamic therapy with curcumin on methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus biofilm

Healthcare-Associated Infections (HAI) effect approximately 1.5 million individuals worldwide. Among the causes of HAIs in Latin America, Staphylococcus aureus presents a severe danger due to its rapid spread and ease of developing antibiotic resistance. Upon acquiring methicillin resistance, it receives the classification Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA), responsible for 40 to 60% of HAIs. The increase in resistant microorganisms led to the search for alternative methods, such as antimicrobial Photodynamic Therapy (aPDT), forming Reactive Oxygen Species (ROS), leading bacterial cells to death. The objective of this work was to evaluate in vitro the antimicrobial action of PDT with curcumin in MRSA biofilm. The strains were induced to form biofilm and incubated with curcumin for 20 min, irradiated with LED (Light Emitting Diode) 450 nm, at 110 mW/cm2, 50 J/cm2 for 455 s, subsequently counting the Colony Forming Units, Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) micrographs, Confocal Microscopy images, Resazurin dye test, ROS quantification to assess the effect of PDT on biofilm. The results show that PDT with curcumin reduced the biofilm growth of the MRSA strain. In addition, confocal microscopy showed that curcumin was internalized by S. aureus in the cells at the concentration used, and when isolated, curcumin and the irradiation parameter did not show cytotoxicity. The study demonstrated that the PDT in the established parameters reduced the growth of the MRSA strain biofilm, making it a relevant alternative possibility for the inactivation of this strain.