Effects of sodium citrate on the structure and microbial community composition of an early-stage multispecies biofilm model

Abstract

In recent years, most biofilm studies have focused on fundamental investigations using multispecies biofilm models developed preferentially in simulated naturally occurring low-nutrient medium than in artificial nutrient-rich medium. Because biofilm development under low-nutrient growth media is slow, natural media are often supplemented with an additional carbon source to increase the rate of biofilm formation. However, there are knowledge gaps in interpreting the effects of such supplementation on the resulting biofilm in terms of structure and microbial community composition. We investigated the effects of supplementation of a simulated freshwater medium with sodium citrate on the resulting structure, bacterial community composition, and microbial network interactions of an early-stage multispecies biofilm model. Qualitative and quantitative analyses of acquired confocal laser scanning microscopy data confirmed that sodium citrate supplementation distinctly increased biofilm biomass. Sequencing data revealed that the microbial community structure of biofilms grown in sodium citrate-supplemented conditions was characterized with increased relative abundance and dominance of Proteobacteria compared with that of biofilms grown in sodium citrate-free conditions. Our findings suggest that the supplementation of a low-nutrient medium with a carbon source in experiments involving multispecies biofilms may lead to structural and compositional biases of the microbial community, causing changes in biofilm phenotype.

Influence of Simplified Microbial Community Biofilms on Bacterial Retention in Porous Media under Conditions of Stormwater Biofiltration

“…S3 and S4). The observed biofilm microbial composition in columns is a result of changes to the inoculum composition and the strains’ relative ability to grow in our nutrient-supplemented media, since nutrient load can influence the microbial composition of biofilm community by promoting the growth or detachment of different species in biofilms ( 48 – 51 ).…”

Beyond Microbial Inactivation: Unveiling the Potential of Detachment-Promoting Agents in Water Distribution System Biofilm Control

“…Yao et al (2020) reported that sodium citrate significantly affected the microbial community and the 3D structure of early-stage multispecies biofilms. 43 Similarly, multiple studies have reported that sodium citrate inhibits the growth of C. albicans, Staphylococcus aureus, Escherichia coli, S. epidermidis, and P. aeruginosa biofilms. 30,31,44−47 Our results showed that biofilm removal significantly increases with increased sodium citrate concentration for both single and multispecies biofilm.…”

“…Previous studies support our result for well-plate multispecies biofilms. Yao et al (2020) reported that sodium citrate significantly affected the microbial community and the 3D structure of early-stage multispecies biofilms . Similarly, multiple studies have reported that sodium citrate inhibits the growth of C.…”

Multispecies biofilms in fermentation: Biofilm formation, microbial interactions, and communication

“…Moreover, the addition of an organic carbon source can increase the biovolume, thickness, and roughness of biofilms under low nutrient conditions. Preference of species for an organic carbon source can influence the microbial network dynamics in biofilms; for instance, the addition of citrate increased coexclusion interactions of Proteobacteria with other phyla and benefited the promoting effect of Actinobacteria on the cohesiveness of the biofilm (Y. Yao et al., 2020). Temperature is an important environmental factor, and low temperatures are usually used to delay the growth of spoilage bacteria to preserve food, especially during the storage phase.…”