18 Dec 2006 Biofilms: Friend or Foe?
Biofilms are nothing new to our world. As described in the Jeopardy question, they can be evident in any environment that has a flow of water and a surface to which to stick. In fact, since 1684 scientists have been striving to determine how to manage biofilms. More than three centuries ago, Antonie van Leeuwenhoek studied dental plaque (which he referred to as scurf), and made the following conclusions: “From whence I conclude, that the vinegar with which I washed my teeth, killed only those animals which were on the outside of the scurf, but did not pass thro the whole substance of it.”