Dr. Edyta Hendiger-Rizo from the Department of Medical Biology at the Faculty of Health Sciences at WUM has received funding through the National Science Centre’s MINIATURA 10 competition.
The funded project is entitled “The effect of bacterial contact on the adhesive phenotype of Acanthamoeba castellanii in a biofilm model developing on contact lens materials.” The main objective of the project is to investigate how the presence of biofilm-forming bacteria and prior exposure of protozoa to bacteria affect the ability of the pathogenic amoeba Acanthamoeba castellanii to adhere to contact lens surfaces. This research is highly relevant to ophthalmology and parasitology because Acanthamoeba causes a serious infection known as Acanthamoeba keratitis, and bacterial biofilms on contact lenses can facilitate the amoeba’s invasion.