Method for Localizing and Differentiating Bacteria within Biofilms Grown on Indium Tin Oxide: Spatial Distribution of Exoelectrogenic Bacteria within Intact ITO Biofilms via FISH
Abstract
With a limited supply of fossil fuel, there has been great interest in the development of new technologies that can take advantage of renewable fuel sources or convert energy stored in waste to usable energy. One such class of technologies are microbial fuel cells (MFCs), which can convert various carbohydrate rich sources as well as wastewater into electricity via biological catalysts. However, electrical current generation in these microbial driven systems is typically low making these technologies unsuitable for widespread use. In order for MFCs to become a viable alternative energy source, methods are needed to better understand the relationship between microbes and electron transfer. This work out-lines a method for spatially differentiating exoelectrogenic bacteria with-in intact bio-films grown on a conductive surface. The technique involves the rapid generation of biofilms by using a drip flow bioreactor (DFR) on indium tin oxide (ITO)-coated slides, in situ fixation of bacteria within the biofilms on the ITO surface, and determining species differentiation and location by probing with fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH). This method was shown to effectively distinguish two exoelectrogens within biofilms on a conductive surface, which could serve as a novel means to study MFCs in greater detail.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Nov 01, 2017
- Accession Number
- AD1049290
Entities
People
- Clint M. Arnett
- Justin D. Lange
Organizations
- Engineer Research and Development Center