Researchers have discovered that optical traps can be used to control the formation of biofilms. They found that using lasers of different wavelengths can stimulate and inhibit biofilm growth. These findings have the potential to allow scientists to utilize these layers of microorganisms for various applications in bioengineering.
“Manufacturing microscopic components usually requires highly advanced fabrication processes, but we have discovered that optical traps can be used to precisely control the position of individual bacteria or clusters of bacteria,” said team leader Anna Bezryadina from California State University Northridge. “This enables us to influence the growth patterns of bacterial structures at a microscopic level with high precision.”
In the journal Biomedical Optics Express, researchers describe their experiments using optical traps to regulate bacterial aggregation and biofilm development. They discovered that different types of lasers can be used to stimulate and inhibit biofilm growth.
“We can even create bacterial building blocks that can be moved, merged, and destroyed as needed,” said Bezryadina. “This work could lead to a new kind of biodegradable materials or a new generation of biodegradable biosensors based on biofilms, for example.”
Using light to control bacterial growth
Most research on biofilms has focused on mechanical, chemical, and biological methods for suppressing and controlling them. While scientists have shown that synthetic and chemical approaches can be used to activate and control biofilms, as well as design biofilms into specific spatial structures, Bezryadina and her team wanted to explore whether optical methods could be used to control the dynamics of biofilm. Achieving this required an interdisciplinary team with expertise in advanced optical technology and microbiology.
The researchers conducted experiments with Bacillus subtilis, a nonpathogenic bacterium that naturally forms biofilms. They used a low-nutrient environment hostile to B. subtilis to stimulate the bacteria to form biofilms. After obtaining small clusters of biofilm, they conducted experiments with optical traps, using a 473 nm wavelength blue laser or a tunable Ti:sapphire near-infrared laser that can be tuned from 700 to 1000 nm.
They found that using a laser with a wavelength of 820-830 nm allowed for long-term optical trapping of biofilm clusters, while minimizing significant photochemical damage. However, using a laser with a wavelength of 473 nm – a wavelength strongly absorbed by bacteria – caused cell rupture and disintegration of the biofilm clusters. It was also observed that ideal bacterial clusters for optical manipulation consist of three to fifteen cells.
Creating patterns
During the investigation of bacterial dynamics and biofilm formation using 820 nm wavelength optical traps for an hour, the researchers discovered that bacterial clusters aggregated near optically trapped clusters, adhered to surfaces, and began to form microcolonies. They were also able to transfer optically trapped bacterial clusters to different locations, which could be useful for building structures from bacteria. The near-infrared laser did not seem to disrupt biofilm formation for clusters of bacteria exposed to highly concentrated near-infrared laser, suggesting that NIR wavelengths in the range of 800 to 850 nm can be used for longer durations of optical trapping, manipulation, and pattern formation of bacterial clusters.
“Despite the seemingly uncontrolled formation of bacterial biofilms in nature, our study has shown that the formation of bacterial biofilms can be controlled using light,” Bezryadina said. “This article represents the first step in a long-term project to create microscopic building materials from readily available resources such as bacteria. In future studies, we plan to use what we have discovered to develop a process for constructing structures from bacterial blocks.”
The experiments overall showed some flexibility in the precise growth conditions, cluster sizes, and wavelengths needed for manipulating biofilms. The researchers suggest that their methodology may also be applicable to other types of biofilm-forming microorganisms.
FAQ section based on key topics and information presented in the article:
1. What discoveries related to the use of optical traps were presented in the article?
Researchers discovered that using lasers of different wavelengths can stimulate and inhibit biofilm growth. This finding may allow scientists to utilize biofilms for various applications in bioengineering.
2. How did the main author, Anna Bezryadina, convey information about the experiments?
Anna Bezryadina, the team leader from California State University Northridge, stated that optical traps can be used to precisely control the position of individual bacteria or clusters of bacteria, allowing for the influence of growth patterns of bacterial structures at a microscopic level with high precision.
3. What are the potential applications of these discoveries?
According to Bezryadina, these discoveries may lead to new types of biodegradable materials or biosensors based on biofilms. These possibilities arise from the manipulation and control of biofilm growth using lasers.
4. How did the researchers experiment with lasers of different wavelengths?
The researchers conducted experiments with Bacillus subtilis, using optical traps with a 473 nm (blue) wavelength laser and a tunable Ti:sapphire near-infrared laser that spans from 700 to 1000 nm. They found that using a laser with a wavelength of 820-830 nm allowed for long-term optical trapping of biofilm clusters.
5. How did the researchers manipulate bacterial clusters using optical traps?
The researchers found that optically trapped bacterial clusters could be transferred and manipulated to different locations. They also created microcolonies of bacteria by stimulating bacterial aggregation near optical traps.
6. What are the potential implications of this research?
The researchers suggest that this method may not only be useful for controlling the growth of Bacillus subtilis biofilms but also other types of biofilm-forming microorganisms.
7. How do the researchers plan to continue their research?
The researchers plan to utilize their discoveries to develop a process for constructing structures from bacterial blocks. They hope that in the future, they will be able to create microscopic building materials using readily available resources, such as bacteria.
Key term definitions and slang:
1. Biofilm – a layer of microorganisms, such as bacteria, that adhere to surfaces and chemical compounds.
2. Optical traps – devices that use beams of light to manipulate or control particles, such as bacteria.
3. Bioengineering – a field of science that combines biology and engineering to develop new biomedical technologies and products.
Suggested related links to the main domain:
1. California State University Northridge
2. Biomedical Optics Express
The source of the article is from the blog aovotice.cz