Dynamics of drinking water biofilm formation associated with Legionella spp. colonization.

ABSTRACT: Understanding how Legionella spp. proliferate in multispecies biofilms is essential to develop strategies to control their presence in building plumbing. Here, we analyzed biofilm formation and Legionella spp. colonization on new plumbing material during 8 weeks. Biofilm formation was characterized by an initial increase in intact cell concentrations up to 9.5 × 10⁵ cells/cm², followed by a steady decrease. We identified Comamonas, Caulobacter, Schlegella, Blastomonas and Methyloversatilis as pioneer genera in the biofilm formation process. Importantly, L. pneumophila was the dominant Legionella spp. and rapidly colonized the biofilms, with culturable cell concentrations peaking at 3.1 × 10⁴ MPN/cm² after 4 weeks already. Moreover, several Legion

SUBMITTER: Margot C 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC11455961 | biostudies-literature | 2024 Oct

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature