Identifying Pioneer Bacterial Species Responsible for Biofouling Membrane Bioreactors

Abstract

More effective control of membrane biofouling in membrane bioreactors (MBRs) lies in the fundamental understanding of the pioneer microorganisms responsible for surface colonization that leads to biofilm formation. In this study, the composition of the planktonic and sessile microbial communities inhabiting four laboratory-scale MBR systems were compared using amplified ribosomal DNA restriction analysis (ARDRA) and 16S ribosomal DNA gene sequencing. The ARDRA results suggest that the microbial communities on membrane surfaces could be very different from the ones in the suspended biomass. Phylogenetic analysis based on the 16S rRNA gene sequences provided a list of bacteria that might be the pioneers of surface colonization on microfiltration membranes. The results further suggested that research on the mechanisms of cell attachment in such an engineering environment could be critical for future development of appropriate biofouling control strategies.

Department(s)

Civil, Architectural and Environmental Engineering

Keywords and Phrases

bacterial DNA; ribosome DNA; RNA 16S; bacterium; biofilm; bioreactor; chemistry; classification; DNA sequence; genetics; isolation and purification; microbiology; molecular genetics; nucleotide sequence; phylogeny; restriction fragment length polymorphism; Bacteria; Biofilms; Bioreactors; DNA; Bacterial; Ribosomal; Molecular Sequence Data; Polymorphism; Restriction Fragment Length; RNA; 16S; Sequence Analysis; Bacteria (microorganisms)

International Standard Serial Number (ISSN)

1462-2912

Document Type

Article - Journal

Document Version

Citation

File Type

text

Language(s)

English

Rights

© 2006 Wiley-Blackwell, All rights reserved.

Publication Date

01 Mar 2006

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