CHED 1138 |
| The main objective of the present research was to investigate the development of bacterial biofilm structures as a function of time. Two different methods of preparing the biofilms for examination under SEM were used, namely: propane freezing, and chemical fixation. The same results were obtained from those different methods when looking at the first three days of biofilm assembly. The results showed how long bacterial rods (ca. 10 by 0.2 µm) in day one divide to smaller cells (ca. 2 by 0.2 µm) in day two and three. It also shows how the amorphous matrix of the biofilm is built over harder sheets that support its growth. The bacterial flagellum was also studied under TEM using 1% neutral phosphotungestic acid as a stain. The results obtained showed that some bacteria had up to three flagella. Results showed that most of the bacteria lose their flagella by the third day of growth. This research can be useful for future biofilm studies by proving that the biofilm structure observed by SEM is real and not artificial since it is shown to be the same in different methods of preparation. It is also useful in understanding how the biofilm grow on the hard sheets, and how important is the flagellum lost in building the biofilm. |
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Undergraduate Research Poster Session: Environmental Chemistry
2:00 PM-4:00 PM, Monday, April 7, 2008 Morial Convention Center -- Hall A, Poster
Division of Chemical Education |