Hyperhalophilic archaeal biofilms: growth kinetics, structure, and antagonistic interaction in continuous culture

<div><p>Biofilms by the hyperhalophilic archaea <i>Halorubrum</i> sp. and <i>Halobacterium</i> sp. were analyzed, and for the first time the progression of structural features and the developmental parameters of these sessile populations are described. Optical slicing and digital analysis of sequential micrographs showed that their three dimensional structure was microorganism dependent. Biofilms of <i>Halobacterium</i> sp. developed in clusters that covered about 30% of the supporting surface at the interface level and expanded over about 86 ± 4 μm in thickness, while <i>Halorubrum</i> sp. biofilms covered less than 20% of the surface and reached a thickness of 41 ± 1 μm. The kinetics of growth was lower in biofilms, with generation times of 27 ± 1 and 36 ± 2 h for <i>Halobacterium</i> sp. and <i>Halorubrum</i> sp., respectively, as compared to 8.4 ± 0.3 and 14 ± 1 h in planktonic cultures. Differences between microorganisms were also observed at the cell morphology level. The interaction between the two microorganisms was also evaluated, showing that <i>Halobacterium</i> sp. can outcompete already established <i>Halorubrum</i> sp. biofilms by a mechanism that might include the combined action of tunnelling swimmers and antimicrobial compounds.</p>