Title: Fabrication of symbiotic multicellular assemblies by using a novel “Gel Layer-by-Gel Layer” technique
Abstract:
The research on biofilms has skyrocketed in recent years due to increased awareness of the pervasiveness and impact of biofilms on natural and industrial systems, as well as human health. A biofilm is a well-organized, cooperating community of microorganisms. Microbial cells attach to the surfaces and develop a biofilm. The yeast species Saccharomyces cerevisiae is capable of forming biofilms on a variety of inert and biological surfaces. Cells in biofilms display phenotypic properties that are radically different from their free-floating planktonic counterparts, including their recalcitrance to antimicrobial agents. In this study, we described a simple, fast, inexpensive and highly reproducible formation of substrate based yeast biofilms by employing a novel “gel layer-by-gel layer” method based on the gelling properties of alginate gels. We combined two different types of cells, i.e. yeast and Chlorella (algae) cells to produced symbiotic two-layered biofilms by using a similar technique. We also include some preliminary results on free standing biofilms in solution which were produced by cleaving of patterned biofilms from the substrate. We demonstrate that the cells preserve their viability upon preparation and manipulation of these artificial biofilms.
