Role of polymer complexes in the formation of biofilms by corrosive bacteria on steel surfaces

The composition of exopolymer complexes (EPCs), synthesized by the monocultures Desulfovibrio sp. 10, Bacillus subtilis 36, and Pseudomonas aeruginosa 27 and by microbial associations involved in the corrosion of metal surfaces has been studied. An analysis of the monosaccharide composition of carbohydrate components, as well as the fatty acid composition of the lipid part of EPCs, was carried out by gasliquid chromatography (GLC). It was found that bacteria in biofilms synthesized polymers; this process was dominated by glucose, while the growth of bacteria in a suspension was marked by a high rhamnose content. Hexouronic acids and hexosamine have been revealed as a part of B. subtilis 36 and P. aeruginosa 27 EPCs. Qualitative differences were revealed in the fatty acid composition of exopolymers in biofilms and in a bacterial suspension. It was shown that the transition to a biofilm form of growth led to an increase in the unsaturation degree of fatty acids in the exopolymers of associative cultures. The results can be used to develop methods to control microbial corrosion of metal surfaces.