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Undergraduate Research at UMass Dartmouth
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Biofilms can be found and formed on a variety of
surfaces, varying from indwelling medical devices
to natural aquatic systems. Formation of a biofilm
(“fouling”) begins with an accumulation of microbial
cells on a surface surrounded in a polysaccharide
based matrix. Depending on the environment in
which the biofilm has formed, non-cellular materials
such as clay or silt particles can be found
in the matrix (Donlan, 2002). In aquatic-based
biofilms, the solid-liquid boundary between water
and the surface, such as a ship hull, offers an
ideal environment for the attachment and growth
of microorganisms. Bacteria and diatoms are the
most dominant forms reported in biofilms and are
coined as “microfoulers.” These microfoulers play
a very important role by providing signals for the
attachment of various macrofouling organisms
ranging from algae and barnacles to oysters and
polychaetes (Donlan, 2002). This can be a nuisance
for aquaculturists as well as commercial and
recreational fishermen. Traditionally, antifouling
heavily relied on fouling-reducing marine paints
that although reduced in toxicity, still contain
some toxic chemicals which can potentially cause
harmful environmental impacts. Limited options for
environmentally friendly and effective eradication
of biofilms have created a need for alternative
antifouling methods (Kim et al., 2016).
During my project over the summer of 2016, we had
a few goals regarding methodology, toward development
of a repeatable and controlled experimental
system for growing marine biofilms in the lab. We also
wanted to test the capabilities of the UV device on
biofilms grown under a range of temperatures, using
microalgal cultures isolated from Buzzards Bay by
Dr. Moisander in 2016. The biofilms were grown for
1–2 weeks in 32L of inoculated microalgal cultures
at two temperatures. Forty aluminum plates, painted
to simulate a boat hull, with non-antifouling paint,
30C Plates post sampling one week into the experiment
30C Experiment Bin