Ampin Kuntiya, Cristiano Nicolella, Leo Pyle, and Naiyatat Poosaran

pp. 1073 - 1082

Abstract

This work presents an experimental study aimed at assessing the relationship between cell surface
hydrophobicity (CSH) and the formation of a membrane-attached biofilm. In particular, the investigation
focused on the effects of growth conditions on the hydrophobicity of bacterial cells grown in suspension.
Identical growth conditions were then used in a lab-scale extractive membrane bioreactor fed on phenol as
the sole carbon source to assess their effect on biofilm formation. CSH was found to decrease with increasing
cellular age and in the presence of sodium chloride (0.5% w/v) in the growth medium. Pictures taken by a
digital camera clearly showed the differences in biofilm morphology resulting from the different growth
conditions: biofilms formed in the membrane bioreactor under low CSH (2%) condition proved to be thinner
and more fragile than those formed under high CSH condition (44%).