Fig. 2

Representative Bacterial Loadings on the Initial VITRO-SKIN Coupon. The ESKAPE+C pathogens were grouped into three separate mixes to facilitate culture-based screening at either high or low levels relative to a consistent background microbial community. Total loadings (black squares) for both the high and low inoculum levels fell within equivalent reported ranges (denoted by black dotted lines) of bacterial loads on the hands of healthcare workers (between 3.9 × 10⁴ and 4.6 × 10⁶ CFU / 9 cm²) [14]