Sociological characteristics of biofilms

Abstract

Biofilms are a kind of biological structure with high complexity and self-organization, composed of a variety of microorganisms (bacteria, archaea, algae, and micro eukaryotes) and biological substrates (polysaccharides, proteins, fatty acids, etc.). They own special structures and ecological functions, and play important roles in microbial colonization, niche construction and environmental adaptability. Many microorganisms’ behaviors, such as pathogenic infection, toxin production, drug resistance, biofouling and pipe blockage, are related with biofilms. The formation of these events is full of various microbial behaviors, including signal communication, cooperation/competition, division of labor, as well as “bacteria intelligence” under the adverse circumstances. These features offer further indication of the sociological attributes of biofilms, which also provide a new insight into them. Thus, based on the 3D structure of biofilms, we took the communication language, collaboration, and intelligent resistance (environmental stress, co-evolution) inside biofilms as the core to elaborate their social characteristics, in order to get a better understanding of their nature and sociomicrobiology.