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Recommended: Briefly discuss biofilms
Biofilms occur extensively in aquatic engineering systems, where they are implicated mainly in biofouling and corrosion. Biofilm cause nosocomial infections by forming persistent growth in catheters and other body implants and medical devices; they also increase drug resistance and dental caries (Donlan, 2001). On the other hand, biofilm development followed by biofouling in cooling water system causes serious blocking of the coolant pipelines in power plants thereby increased load on pumps, microbial induced corrosion and substantial economic loss (Boffardi, 2005; Flemming, 2002; Oliveira, et al, 1993 and Rao et al. 1993). In waste treatment systems such as trickling filters, wet biofilms are used for catalyzing pollutant transformations (Wyndham, 1995).
Microbial world is extremely diverse and so is their life style and adaptation to survive in any environment (Staley et al, 1997). Different bacteria acquire different mechanism to adhere and initiate the biofilm development depending upon their environment. Some bacteria use their pili or flagella to establish primary attachment (Virji et al. 1993). In the present work we investigated the role of a surface protein (Bap) in S. aureus in establishing biofilm on glass surface and the topological changes in response to Ca2+ concentration from 1 mM to 20 mM on the biofilm morphology. Earlier work by Arrizubieta et al. (2004) showed that expression of Bap is not affected in presence of Ca2+. We provide information on changes in surface protein mediated growth in the presence of various concentrations of Ca2+. Calcium is an environmental variable which influence the biofilm formation of certain bacteria (Geesey et al. 2000; Patruchan et al. 2005).
In a previous report Arrizu...
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...erent environment containing varying calcium concentrations.
Conclusions:
From the present investigation we established the following salient points;
(1) Bap mediated biofilm development in S. aureus V329 is inhibited 5 mM Calcium (2) Other bap negative strains of S. aureus, SA7 and SA33 do not show any inhibition due to the presence of calcium even up to 50 mM. (3) Structurally similar BapA harbouring A. baumannii did not show any inhibition in biofilm formation in response to calcium. (4) CSLM study showed that varying Ca2+ concentrations significantly influenced the architecture and topology of the biofilm. CSLM study also shows that chelating of calcium by EDTA can inverse the effect calcium on biofilm development. (5) This study also specifies that the presence EF hand motif in Bap makes V329 strain responsive to Ca2+ presence in the milieu.
Todar, K. (2002). Streptococcus pyogenes (Vol. 1). Madison: University of Wisconsin-Madison Department of Bact. Retrieved July 30, 2008, from http://www.textbookofbacteriology.net/streptococcus.html
The resistance to many antibiotics is a well-known property of bacterial biofilms. Biofilms are dense...
Acinetobacter baumannii are aerobic and non-fermentative, gram-negative bacteria [6]. This bacterium is an opportunistic pathogen found in soil and water. Also, it is commonly isolated from the hospital environment and hospitalized patients; therefore, it is known to cause nosocomial infections [6,9]. In addition, this bacterium has the ability to adhesion and forming biofilms on abiotic surfaces as well as the ability of secretion of the exopolysaccharide (EPS) a substance that allows the binding of bacterial cells to the surface, and with each other [6,9]. Further more, this bacterium capable of developing a new resistance to antibiotics by several mechanisms such as inhibiting the 30S ribosomal subunit, mutations, or Efflux
colonies ranging from 1–2 mm in diameter (vetbact.org). This strain of bacteria is a facultative anaerobic organism, which means that it can grow with or without oxygen. Staphylococcus epidermis grows well on nutrient agar dishes with a temperatur...
...nvironmental Microbiology. New York: A John Wiley & Sons, Inc; 1992. pp. 125?156. Accessed December 2, 2013.
Stephenson, R., & Blackburn, J. J. (1998). The Industrial Wastewater Systems Handbook. New York: Lewis Publishers.
Compounding all of these solutions, the pharmaceutical industry needs to conduct extensive research on developing new antibiotics for various pathogenic bacteria by studying the bacterial structure. This will help scientists to formulate ways of counteracting the functions of the various constituents of bacteria.
Multiplication of attached organisms leads to confluent growth and biofilm formation. Adherent bacteria synthesise extracellular polymers.
Bacterial cells, like plant cells, are surrounded by a cell wall. However, bacterial cell walls are made up of polysaccharide chains linked to amino acids, while plant cell walls are made up of cellulose, which contains no amino acids. Many bacteria secrete a slimy capsule around the outside of the cell wall. The capsule provides additional protection for the cell. Many of the bacteria that cause diseases in animals are surrounded by a capsule. The capsule prevents the white blood cells and antibodies from destroying the invading bacterium. Inside the capsule and the cell wall is the cell membrane. In aerobic bacteria, the reactions of cellular respiration take place on fingerlike infoldings of the cell membrane. Ribosomes are scattered throughout the cytoplasm, and the DNA is generally found in the center of the cell. Many bacilli and spirilla have flagella, which are used for locomotion in water. A few types of bacteria that lack flagella move by gliding on a surface. However, the mechanism of this gliding motion is unknown. Most bacteria are aerobic, they require free oxygen to carry on cellular respiration. Some bacteria, called facultatibe anaerobes can live in either the presence or absence of free oxygen. They obtain energy either by aerobic respiration when oxygen is present or by fermentation when oxygen is absent. Still other bacteria cannot live in the presence of oxygen. These are called obligate anaerobes. Such bacteria obtain energy only fermentation. Through fermentation, different groups of bacteria produce a wide variety of organic compounds. Besides ethyl alcohol and lactic acid, bacterial fermentation can produce acetic acid, acetone, butyl alcohol, glycol, butyric acid, propionic acid, and methane, the main component of natural gas. Most bacteria are heterotrophic bacteria are either saprophytes or parasites. Saprophytes feed on the remains of dead plants and animals, and ordinarily do not cause disease. They release digestive enzymes onto the organic matter. The enzymes breakdown the large food molecules into smaller molecules, which are absorbed by the bacterial cells. Parasites live on or in living organisms, and may cause disease. A few types of bacteria are Autotrophic, they can synthesize the organic nutrients they require from inorganic substances. Autotrophic bacteria are either photosynthetic or Chemosynthetic. The photosynthetic bacteria contain chlorophyll that are different from the plant chlorophyll. In bacterial photosynthesis, hydrogen is obtained by the splitting of compounds other than water.
Biofilms can form on many surfaces, including natural aquatic systems, human teeth, medical devices like artificial heart valves and catheters,
Addition of air and mechanical mixing to enchance the growth of bacteria and ficilitate subsequent waste reduction
They’re out there! You can’t see them but they can see you. Right at this very moment they are living on and in your body, and there is nothing you can do about it!
Environmental pollution produces bacteria which results as diseases and disorders in humans, animals, agricultural plantations. The process of pollution occurs when toxins are released into the ground water from landfill sites, this pollution stays in the environment for hundreds of years, while they break dow...
Minear, R., Amy, G.. Water Disinfection and Natural Organic Matter: History and Overview. ACS Symposium Series. 1996, 649, 1-9.
Biofilms are formed by a six step process. First is a reversible process, when an organic monolayer(made of polysaccharides or glycoproteins) absorbs to the surface, altering the chemical and physical properties of the surface. This makes the surface more conditioned and increase the chance that planktonic bacteria will attach. Secondly, also a reversible step, is when the free-floating or planktonic bacteria encounter the conditioned surface, and some attachment of the bacteria may occur. The third step is when the bacteria is left attached too long, then an irreversible attachment occurs. F...