Dresden 2017 – scientific programme

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BP: Fachverband Biologische Physik

BP 23: Posters - Statistical Physics of Biological Systems

BP 23.2: Poster

Tuesday, March 21, 2017, 14:00–16:00, P1A

The architecture of bacterial biofilms depends on biofilm age and active force generation — •Anton Welker, Nadzeya Kouzel, and Berenike Maier — Biophysik, Köln, Deutschland

Many bacterial species aggregate in communities, called biofilms. In contrast to individual bacteria, bacterial biofilms show a complex structure, which makes them resistant against a variety of environmental factors and causes environmental, industrial and medical problems. Bacteria can adjust the three dimensional structure of their biofilms to varying environmental conditions. However, the molecular mechanisms governing biofilm structure are unclear. Here, we characterized the three-dimensional structure of biofilms formed by the human pathogen Neisseria gonorrhoeae at cellular resolution. In particular, the local density distribution, radial distribution function and parameters describing ordering and defects were implemented. We found that force-generating and force-defective bacterial microcolonies show significant differences in microcolony shape and density. The radial distribution function showed a significant difference in local ordering dependent on biofilm age, indicating that the density and the fraction of diplococci increased with biofilm age.