Global gene expression in Escherichia coli, isolated from the diseased ocular surface of the human eye with a potential to form biofilm

Background Escherichia coli, the gastrointestinal commensal, is also known to cause ocular infections such as conjunctivitis, keratitis and endophthalmitis. These infections are normally resolved by topical application of an appropriate antibiotic. But, at times these E. coli are resistant to the antibiotic and this could be due to formation of a biofilm. In this study ocular E. coli from patients with conjunctivitis, keratitis or endophthalmitis were screened for their antibiotic susceptibility and biofilm formation potential. In addition DNA-microarray analysis was done to identify genes that are involved in biofilm formation and antibiotic resistance.