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Biofilms© Zany
What are biofilms? According to the site by Edstrom Industries , ...."biofilms are a collection of microorganisms surrounded by the slime they secrete, attached to either an inert or living surface...". Sometimes they are called "slime cities". Whether you know it or not biofilms are a part of your life. The tartar on your teeth is a biofilm, as is the slime on a river rock or the slimy coating inside a pipe. They can be either beneficial or harmful. Either way, they are being studied and new and interesting facts are being discovered. The Edstrom site is a good introduction to biofilms. It takes you through a step by step development of a biofilm on a clean water pipe. The explanation is very readable. There is a glossary to describe unfamiliar terms and diagrams to help with the story. The site goes on to explain that the formation of a biofilm can be "...viewed as a survival mechanism...". It is a means by which bacteria and other organisms inhabiting the biofilm obtain both food and protection. The web site states that biofilm bacteria "...display a stunning resistance to biocides". A biocide is a poison used to kill bacteria i.e. a disinfectant. This is partly due to the slime, which they encase themselves in. The conclusions point out that bacteria are a very successful life form. They have developed protected biofilms that enhance their survival possibilities. Try to eliminate them and they figure out a counter offensive. Must be an interesting area of research.
Another great and informative site about biofilms is Biofilms: online manual. It is the work of a Professor of Microbiology at Pennsylvania State University, John Lennox. It is more scientific is nature but still very readable. I would like this site better if it didn't have frames. Oh well. In the primer, examples of biofilms as well as their beneficial and detrimental attributes are discussed. The site doesn't host a glossary to define unfamiliar concepts or terms. A diagram showing the well-defined stages of formation (from conception to mature biofilm) illustrates that the development of a biofilm is not a random process. Biofilms: online manual investigates biofilms with the help of nineteen experiments of varying degree of difficulty. The experiments include two methods of sampling biofilms, buried slide technique and microbial fishing. The leaching of copper from low-grade ore (CuS) using biofilm-producing bacteria thiobacillus is another experiment. You will find a wealth of information here along with a greater understanding of biofilms. Go To Page: 1 2
The copyright of the article Biofilms in Science Websites is owned by Patrice Bentham . Permission to republish Biofilms in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.
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