Intermittent flow paths in biofilms grown in a microfluidic channel

Fuente: arXiv
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Main Authors: Bozkurt, Kerem, Lohrmann, Christoph, Weinhardt, Felix, Hanke, Daniel, Hopp, Raphael, Gerlach, Robin, Holm, Christian, Class, Holger
Format: Preprint
Published: 2025
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author Bozkurt, Kerem
Lohrmann, Christoph
Weinhardt, Felix
Hanke, Daniel
Hopp, Raphael
Gerlach, Robin
Holm, Christian
Class, Holger
author_facet Bozkurt, Kerem
Lohrmann, Christoph
Weinhardt, Felix
Hanke, Daniel
Hopp, Raphael
Gerlach, Robin
Holm, Christian
Class, Holger
contents Biofilms exposed to flow experience shear stress, which leads to a competitive interaction between the growth and development of a biofilm and shearing. In this study, Pseudonomas fluorescene biofilm was grown in a microfluidic channel and exposed to forced flow of an aqueous solution of variable velocity. It can be observed that under certain conditions preferential flow paths form with a dynamic, but quasi-steady state interaction of growth, detachment, and re-attachment. We find that the regimes for preferential flow path development are determined by nutrient availability and the ratio of shear stress versus the biofilm's ability to resist shear forces. The intermittent regime of flow paths is mainly driven by the supply with nutrients, which we confirm by comparison with a numerical model based on coarse-grained molecular dynamics and Lattice Boltzmann hydrodynamics.
format Preprint
id arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2504_00062
institution arXiv
publishDate 2025
record_format arxiv
spellingShingle Intermittent flow paths in biofilms grown in a microfluidic channel
Bozkurt, Kerem
Lohrmann, Christoph
Weinhardt, Felix
Hanke, Daniel
Hopp, Raphael
Gerlach, Robin
Holm, Christian
Class, Holger
Fluid Dynamics
Biological Physics
Biofilms exposed to flow experience shear stress, which leads to a competitive interaction between the growth and development of a biofilm and shearing. In this study, Pseudonomas fluorescene biofilm was grown in a microfluidic channel and exposed to forced flow of an aqueous solution of variable velocity. It can be observed that under certain conditions preferential flow paths form with a dynamic, but quasi-steady state interaction of growth, detachment, and re-attachment. We find that the regimes for preferential flow path development are determined by nutrient availability and the ratio of shear stress versus the biofilm's ability to resist shear forces. The intermittent regime of flow paths is mainly driven by the supply with nutrients, which we confirm by comparison with a numerical model based on coarse-grained molecular dynamics and Lattice Boltzmann hydrodynamics.
title Intermittent flow paths in biofilms grown in a microfluidic channel
topic Fluid Dynamics
Biological Physics
url https://arxiv.org/abs/2504.00062