title: Antibiofilm activity of Bacillus pumilus SW9 against initial biofouling on microfiltration membranes.
abstract: Membrane biofouling, resulting from biofilm formation on the membrane, has become the main obstacle hindering wider application of membrane technology. Initial biofouling proves to be crucial which involves early stages of microbial adhesion and biofilm formation. Biological control of microbial attachment seems to be a promising strategy due to its high efficiency and eco-friendliness. The present study investigated the effects of a bacterium Bacillus pumilus SW9 on controlling the initial fouling formed by four target bacterial strains which were pioneer species responsible for biofouling in membrane bioreactors, using microfiltration membranes as the abiotic surfaces. The results suggested that strain SW9 exhibited excellent antibiofilm activity by decreasing the attached biomass of target strains. The production of extracellular polysaccharides and proteins by four target strains was also reduced. A distinct improvement of permeate flux in dead-end filtration systems was achieved when introducing strain SW9 to microfiltration experiments. Scanning electron microscopy and confocal laser scanning microscopy were performed to further ascertain significant changes of the biofouling layers. A link between biofilm inhibition and initial biofouling mitigation was thus provided, suggesting an alternatively potential way to control membrane biofouling through bacterial interactions.
authors.affiliation: Key Laboratory of Urban Environment and Health, Institute of Urban Environment, Chinese Academy of Sciences, 1799 Jimei Road, Xiamen, 361021, People's Republic of China.
authors.forename: Ying
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.forename: Xin
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Yu
authors.forename: Song
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Gong
authors.forename: Chengsong
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Ye
authors.forename: Zihong
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Fan
authors.forename: Huirong
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Lin
mesh_terms: D000898:Antibiosis; D001407:Bacillus / Q000502:physiology*; D001422:Bacterial Adhesion / Q000187:drug effects; D018441:Biofilms / Q000187:drug effects / Q000254:growth & development*; D057219:Biofouling; D004783:Environmental Microbiology; D005374:Filtration; D008567:Membranes, Artificial; D018613:Microscopy, Confocal; D008855:Microscopy, Electron, Scanning; D018508:Water Purification
chemical_list: D008567:Membranes, Artificial