Fig. 4

Number of cells removed from the biofilm due to the washing and medium addition procedures. Cultivable and total cell numbers recovered in the saline solution used in each washing step (W) were respectively determined by CFU counting (a) and flow cytometry (b). The number of cells in the 24 h-old biofilm suspensions, which was discarded before biofilm washing step, is represented as S.24 h (suspension 24 h). Bars represent the average ± standard deviation of 2–3 independent experiments. Statistical significance was determined using One-way ANOVA and Bonferroni’s multiple comparison test. a Statistical significance when comparing with the previous wash and b when comparing with the following wash. **P < 0.01, ***P < 0.001