David Allison

David Allison is a Senior Lecturer in Pharmaceutical Microbiology at the School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Manchester, having been appointed as lecturer in January 1990. His first degree was in microbiology at Edinburgh University (1977-1981), as were his graduate studies (1981-1984) in microbial physiology, where he studied the role of bacterial exopolysaccharides in cell adhesion under the watchful eye of Professor Ian Sutherland.

On leaving Edinburgh in 1984 he emigrated to join Zeneca Pharmaceuticals, Macclesfield, England, for a three-year postdoctoral period investigating the production and role of ß-lactam antibiotics in bacteria. This was followed by a further period of postdoctoral research (1987-1989), at Aston University, Birmingham, England, on the properties and surface antigenicity of clinically important adherent bacterial populations. Since his appointment at Manchester he has focused his research interests on the physiology (particularly EPS characterisation) and antimicrobial resistance properties of bacterial biofilms, cell-cell signaling in mono and mixed species biofilms and the infectivity and virulence properties of biofilm forming opportunistic lung pathogens. In this respect, his research crosses a number of different fields, including those of medical, industrial and ecological microbiology where he has attracted support from both private and public sector. He maintains an active research group, has successfully supervised a number of students, has over 70 publications in these areas and is currently an editor to the on-line journal 'Biofilm' and to The Journal of Basic Microbiology. David has been an active member of the Biofilm Club, participating (speaker, rapporteur, chair) at each Gregynog Meeting, as well as attending every AGM. He is currently Membership Secretary and Treasurer to the Biofilm Club.

Recent publications:

ALLISON, D.G., CRONIN, M.A., HAWKER, J. & FREEMAN, S. (2000). Influence of cranberry juice on attachment of Escherichia coli to glass. J. Basic Microbiol.40: 3-6.

ALLISON, D.G. McBAIN, A.J. & GILBERT, P. (2000). Biofilms: Problems of control. IN Community and Co-operation in Biofilms (H. Lappin-Scott, M. Wilson, P. Gilbert and D.G. Allison, eds.), pp309-327. SGM Symposium 58: Cambridge University Press

GILBERT, P., DAS, J.R., JONES, M. & ALLISON, D.G. (2001). Assessment of resistance toweards biocides following the attachment of microorganisms to, and growth on, surfaces. J. Appl. Microbiol.. 91: 248-254.

Melanie Braiding

Melanie first became interested in Biofilms at Exeter University, during her PhD that investigated the role of fluid flow and surface type on bacterial biofilm formation. After a brief time as a Postdoc, understanding the anti-microbial effects of maggot excretions on wound healing, she joined the oral care programme for Unilever R&D in 1996. She currently acts as Lead Oral Microbiologist, heading up and co-ordinating the R&D microbiology activities across the group. Her main focus is understanding the microbial ecology and physiology of dental plaque, as well as researching efficacy of novel antimicrobial systems on plaque control.

Recent Publications:
Brading, M. G and Marsh, P. D. 2003. The oral environment: the challenge for anti-microbials in oral care products. International Dental Journal. 53. 353-362.

Brading, M. G., Cromwell, V. J., Jones, N. M., Baldeck, J. D., and Marquis, R. E. 2003. Anti-microbial efficacy and mode of action studies on a new zinc/ Triclosan formulation. International Dental Journal. 53. 363-370.

Brading, M. G., Cromwell, V. J., Green, A. K., DeBrabander, S, Beasley, T and Marsh, P. D. 2004. The Role of Triclosan in Dentifrice Formulations, with Particular Reference to a new 0.3% Triclosan calcium carbonate-based System. International Dental Journal. 54. 291-298.

Madden, I. M., Neuman, H., Hall, C., Brading, M. G., Ketkar, V. and Bidinger. P. D. 2004. Sustained oral health improvement and use of toothbrushes and dentifrice by previous users of traditional materials in a rural population in Andhra Pradesh, India. International Dental Journal. 54. 315-320.

Peter Gilbert

Peter Gilbert is Professor of Microbial Physiology and Director of the Biofilm Research Group within the School of Pharamcy ( www.biofilms.org.uk ).    He graduated in Bacteriology in 1972 from the University of Newcastle upon Tyne and subsequently gained a doctorate in Microbial Physiology in 1975 through the CNAA.  After a short postdoctoral period with Prof Mike Brown (Brimingham, UK) he joined the academic staff at Manchester where he has remained to the current time.  He has published widely in the field of biocide action and resistance mechanisms and also in the general area of microbial biofilms and drug resistance.  He has supervised the research of more than sixty graduate students, many of whom have now established their own academic research groups in the US and USA. He is the editor of eight research texts in these areas, and has published over 500 papers, reviews and book articles since 1980.  He is a regular speaker at national and international scientific meetings and has been made an honorary life member of the PharmMIG. Much of the researh conducted by Professor Gilbert is funded directly from Industries in the UK and USA. Strong collaborative links exist with Dr John Holah at the Camden Food and Drunk Research Association, and with Universities in the United States and Europe.

Recent publications:

McBain AJ, Ledder RG, Moore LE, Catrenich CE, Gilbert P. (2004) Effects of quaternary ammonium based formulations on community dynamics and antimicrobial susceptibility. Applied and Environmental Microbiology . 3449-3456.

McBain, AJ, Sissons C, Ledder RG, Sreenivasan PK, De Vizio W and Gilbert P. (2004) Development and characterisation of a simple perfused oral microcosm. Journal of Applied Microbiology. In press.

McBain AJ, Ledder RG, Gilbert P (2004) Selection for resistance by chronic triclosan exposure is not universal. Journal of Antimicrobial Chemotherapy. 772-777.

McBain AJ, Bartolo RG, Catrenich CE, Charbonneau D, Ledder RG, Gilbert P (2003) Effects of triclosan-containing rinse on the dynamics and antimicrobial susceptibility of in-vitro plaque ecosystems. Antimicrobial Agents and Chemotherapy. 47, 11:3531-3538.

McBain AJ, Bartolo RG, Catrenich CE, Charbonneau D, Ledder RG, Gilbert P (2003) Exposure of sink-drain microcosms to triclosan: Population dynamics and antimicrobial susceptibility. Applied and Environmental Microbiology. 69, 5433-5442 .

Hopkins MJ, Englyst HN, Macfarlane S, Furrie E, Macfarlane GT, McBain AJ (2003) Degradation of Cross-Linked and Non Cross-Linked Arabinoxylans by the Intestinal Microbiota in Children. Applied and Environmental Microbiology. 69, 11. 6354-6360.

Mathew Upton

Mat was brought up in the West Country, near Bath. He left the area to complete a degree in microbiology and a PhD in microbial soil ecology at the University of Newcastle upon Tyne. His travels continued via postdoc projects in Aberdeen, Liverpool, Bristol and New Zealand where he used a range of molecular techniques to study bacteria from medical and environmental settings. In his last postdoc, at the University of Otago in Dunedin, New Zealand, he developed an interest in analysis of gene regulation of peptide signalling systems in streptococci.
In 2001 Mat took up a lectureship in medical microbiology at the University of Manchester. He is Co-Director of the MSc in medical and molecular biology on which he teaches. He supervises a number of summer projects studying aspects of biofilm biology relevant to medicine and infectious disease processes and has two PhD students studying Staphylococcus epidermidis, that well known biofilm forming creature. Mat intends to apply his knowledge of molecular biology to understanding the community interactions of biofilm forming organisms.
Other aspects of Mat's research focus on the rapid detection and typing of bacterial pathogens using genotypic and phenotypic methods.

Recent Publications:

Upton, M., B. Hill, C. Edwards, JR. Saunders, DA. Ritchie & D. Lloyd . (2000) Combined molecular ecological and confocal laser scanning microscopic analysis of peat bog methanogen populations. FEMS Microbiology Letters: 193, 275-281.

Upton, M., P. Wescombe, JR. Tagg & HF. Jenkinson. (2001). Intra- and inter- species signaling between Streptococcus salivarius and Streptococcus pyogenes mediated by SalA and SalA1 lantibiotic peptides. Journal of Bacteriology, 183, 3931-3938.

Upton, M., R. Nagai & PR. Kay. (2003). Are biofilms important in prosthetic joint infection? In Biofilm communities: order from chaos? A. McBain, D. Allison, M. Brading, A. Rickard, J. Verran & J. Walker (Eds), BioLine, Cardiff UK, pp. 27-36.

Banner, M., M. Upton & PS. Handley . (2005). The structure and function of the accumulation associated protein and its role in biofilm formation of Staphylococcus epidermidis . In Biofilms: Persistence and ubiqity A. McBain, D. Allison, J. Pratten, D. Spratt, M. Upton & J. Verran (Eds), BioLine, Cardiff UK.

Wescombe, PA., M. Upton, KP. Dierksen, NL. Ragland, S. Sivabalan, R. Wirawan, M. Inglis, CJ. Moore, GV. Walker, C. Chilcott, HF. Jenkinson & JR. Tagg . (2006). Production of the lantibiotic salivaricin A and its variants by oral streptococci and the use of a specific induction assay to detect their presence in human saliva. Applied and Environmental Microbiology: 2, 1459-66.

Jury, F., M. Al-Mahrous, M. Apostolou, S. Sandiford, A. Fox, W. Ollier & M. Upton . (2006). Rapid, cost-effective sub-typing of methicillin resistant Staphylococcus aureus by denaturing high pressure liquid chromatography. Journal of Medical Microbiology in press.

David Spratt

David Spratt graduated from the University of the West of England in 1990 with a degree in Applied Biological Sciences. His interest in oral microbiology began when he started a PhD studying microbial physiology of Capnocytophaga gingivalis, an oral commensal. After gaining his PhD in 1994 David joined the Oral Microbiology Unit at Bristol University Dental School working on the use of molecular techniques to identify unculturable organisms in dental infections.
In 1996 he moved to Oral Microbiology Unit at Guy's Hospital ) to work on the molecular analysis of the diversity among oral asaccharolytic Eubacterium species in subgingival plaque. In 1997 David was appointed as a postdoctoral research fellow in the Conservative Dentistry Unit at the Eastman Dental Institute.
He was appointed to the position of lecturer in microbiology in 1998. His main research interests involve characterizing microbial population shifts in relation to health and disease.

Recent publications:

Biofilms and the Oral Cavity. Spratt DA, Pratten J. Reviews in Environmental Science and Bio/Technology 2003; 2: 109-120.

Characterization of in vitro oral bacterial biofilms by traditional and molecular methods. Pratten J, Wilson M and Spratt DA. Oral Microbiology and Immunology 2003; 18: 45 -49. Prevalence of Tetracycline Res istance Genes in Oral Bacteria. Villedieu A, Diaz-Torres ML, Hunt N, McNab R, Spratt DA , Wilson M, Mullany P. Antimicrobial Agents and Chemotherapy 2003; 47: 878-82.

Evaluation of protocols for field decontamination prior to bacterial sampling of root canals for contemporary microbiological s tudy technique. Ng Yuan-ling, Spratt DA, Sriskantharajah S, Gulabivala K. Journal of Endodontics 2003; 29: 317-20 .

Novel tetracycline resistance determinant from the oral metagenome Diaz-Torres ML, McNab R, Spratt DA, Villedieu A, Hunt N, Wilson M, Mullany P. Antimicrobial Agents and Chemotherapy 2003; 47: 1430-2.

Prevalence, proportions and identities of antibiotic-resistant bacteria in the oral microflora of healthy children Ready D, Spratt DA, Wilson M, Mullany P. Microbial Drug Res istance 2003; 9: 367-72.

Prevalence and Identification of tetracycline-resistant oral bacteria in children not receiving antibiotic therapy Lancaster H, Ready D, Mullany P, Bedi R, Spratt DA, Wilson M. FEMS Microbiology Letters 2003;228: 99-104.

Effectiveness of electrochemically activated water as an irrigant in an infected tooth model. Gulabivala K, Stock CJR, Lewsey J, Ghori S, Ng Y-L, Spratt D A . International Endodontic Journal 2004; 37; 624-31 .

Cultivable microbial flora associated with persistant periapical disease and coronal leakage after root canal treatment: a p[reliniary study A dib V, Spratt D A , Ng Y-L, Gulabivala K. International Endodontic Journal 2004;37:542-551.

In Vitro modeling of dental water line contamination and decontamination. Spratt D A , Latif J, M ontebugnoli LL, Wilson M . FE M S M icrobiology Letters 2004; 235: 363-67.

Genetic basis of erythromycin resistance in oral bacteria . Villedieu A, Diaz-Torres ML, Roberts AP, Hunt N, McNab R, Spratt DA, Wilson M, Mullany P. Antimicrobial Agents and Chemotherapy. 2004;48:2298-301.

etection of selected periodontal pathogens in dental plaque of prepubertal children using a Nested M ultiplex PCR technique. Gafan G, Lucas VS, Roberts GJ, Petrie A , Wilson M , Spratt D A . Journal of Clinical M icrobiology. 2004; 42: 4141-46.

Jon Pratten

Since joining the Eastman Dental Institute I have specialised in oral biofilm research. I completed my PhD, sponsored by GlaxoSmithKline, entitled 'The effect of chlorhexidine and other antimicrobial agents on the formation and viability of oral bacterial biofilms' in 1998. In the same year I was appointed as a postdoctoral research fellow in the Department of Microbiology, EDI and in 2002 progressed to the position of lecturer. Biofilms of oral bacteria can cause localized diseases in the oral cavity including; caries, periodontal diseases, endodontic, orthodontic and implant infections as well as systemic diseases such as infective endocarditis. My research has focused on the modeling of oral biofilms to understand adhesion, susceptibility, structure, signaling, transfer of genetic elements and virulence in order to prevent and control diseases caused by biofilm infections.

Recent Publications:

Spratt DA and Pratten J . 2006. Carbon substrate utilisation as a method of studying biofilm development. Biofilms 2: 1-5.

Dalwai F, Spratt DA and Pratten J . 2006. Modeling shifts in microbial populations associated with health or disease. App Environ Microbiol 72: 3678-3684.

Chin MYH, Busscher HJ, Evans R, Noar J and Pratten J . 2006. Early biofilm formation and the effects of antimicrobial agents on orthodontic bonding materials in a parallel plate flow chamber: a novel approach. Eur J Orthodont 28: 1-7.

Elliott D, Pratten J , Edwards M, Crowther J, Petrie A and Wilson M. 2005. Bacterial biofilm development on hydroxyapatite-coated glass. Curr Microbiol51: 41-45.

Zanin ICJ, Gonçalves RB, Brugnera A, Hope CK and Pratten J . 2005. Susceptibility of Streptococcus mutans biofilms to photodynamic therapy: an in vitro study. J Antimicrob Chemother 56: 324-330.

Leung D, Spratt DA, Pratten J , Gulabivala K, Mordan NJ and Young AM. 2005. Chlorhexidine-releasing methacrylate dental composite materials. Biomaterials 26: 7145-7153.

Lamfon H, Al-Karaawi Z, McCullough M, Porter SR and Pratten J . 2005. Composition of in vitro denture plaque biofilms and susceptibility to antifungals. FEMS Microbiol Lett 242(2): 345-351.

Lamfon H, Porter SR, McCullough M and Pratten J. 2004. The susceptibility of Candida albicans biofilms grown in a constant depth film fermentor to chlorhexidine, fluconazole and miconazole: a longitudinal study. Journal of Antimicrobial Chemotherapy 53 : 383 - 385.

Noar JH, Evans RD, Wilson D, Costello J, Ioannou E, Ayeni A, Mordan NJ, Wilson M and Pratten J. 2003. An in vitro study into the corrosion of intra-oral magnets in the presence of dental amalgam. European Journal of Orthodontics 25 : 615-619.

Lamfon H, Porter SR, McCullough M and Pratten J. 2003. Formation of Candida albicans biofilms on non-shedding oral surfaces. European Journal of Oral Sciences 111 : 465-471.

Pratten J, Pasu M, Jackson G, Flanagan A and Wilson M. 2003. Modeling oral malodor in a longitudinal study. Archives of Oral Biology 48 : 737-743. Badawi H, Evans RD, Wilson M, Ready D, Noar JH and Pratten J. 2003. The effect of orthodontic bonding materials on dental plaque accumulation and composition in vitro . Biomaterials 24 : 3345-3350.

Pratten J, Wilson M and Spratt DA. 2003. Characterization of in vitro oral bacterial biofilms by traditional and molecular methods. Oral Microbiology and Immunology 18 : 45-49.