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Applied and Environmental Microbiology, October 1998, p. 3731-3739, Vol. 64, No. 10
0099-2240/98/$04.00+0
Copyright © 1998, American Society for Microbiology. All rights reserved.

Structural and Functional Dynamics of Sulfate-Reducing Populations in Bacterial Biofilms

Cecilia M. Santegoeds,* Timothy G. Ferdelman, Gerard Muyzer,dagger and Dirk de Beer

Max Planck Institute for Marine Microbiology, D-28359 Bremen, Germany

Received 26 February 1998/Accepted 31 July 1998

We describe the combined application of microsensors and molecular techniques to investigate the development of sulfate reduction and of sulfate-reducing bacterial populations in an aerobic bacterial biofilm. Microsensor measurements for oxygen showed that anaerobic zones developed in the biofilm within 1 week and that oxygen was depleted in the top 200 to 400 µm during all stages of biofilm development. Sulfate reduction was first detected after 6 weeks of growth, although favorable conditions for growth of sulfate-reducing bacteria (SRB) were present from the first week. In situ hybridization with a 16S rRNA probe for SRB revealed that sulfate reducers were present in high numbers (approximately 108 SRB/ml) in all stages of development, both in the oxic and anoxic zones of the biofilm. Denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis (DGGE) showed that the genetic diversity of the microbial community increased during the development of the biofilm. Hybridization analysis of the DGGE profiles with taxon-specific oligonucleotide probes showed that Desulfobulbus and Desulfovibrio were the main sulfate-reducing bacteria in all biofilm samples as well as in the bulk activated sludge. However, different Desulfobulbus and Desulfovibrio species were found in the 6th and 8th weeks of incubation, respectively, coinciding with the development of sulfate reduction. Our data indicate that not all SRB detected by molecular analysis were sulfidogenically active in the biofilm.

* Corresponding author. Mailing address: Max Planck Institute for Marine Microbiology, Celsiusstr. 1, D-28359 Bremen, Germany. Phone: 49-421-2028-838. Fax: 49-421-2028-580. E-mail: ssantego{at}mpi-bremen.de.

dagger Present address: Netherlands Institute for Sea Research (NIOZ), 1790 AB Den Burg, The Netherlands.

Applied and Environmental Microbiology, October 1998, p. 3731-3739, Vol. 64, No. 10
0099-2240/98/$04.00+0
Copyright © 1998, American Society for Microbiology. All rights reserved.


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