Isolation and Identification of Biofilm forming Bacteria from Glass Panels exposed in Sea Waters of South Andaman, India

Marine organisms attach to surfaces that are submerged in seawater in a process known as biofouling. These organisms can colonize on various surfaces such as ship hulls, pillars, jetties, undersea pipelines, oil rigs and buoys. Foulers can include bacteria, algae, barnacles, mussels and other invertebrates. The initial adhesion of fouling bacteria is the first stage of biofouling. The growth and attachment of marine fouling bacteria are influenced by various environmental factors including salinity, temperature and nutrient availability. The bacteria forming marine biofilm were isolated and identified from glass panels. Basic microbiological phenotypic identification methods and genotypic validation using 16s rRNA gene sequencing were used to identify the bacterial strains. The phylogenetic analysis of the 16s rRNA gene sequences confirmed 13 different species (Bacillus aquimaris (2), Vibrio hepatarius (1), Exiguobacterium profundum (3), Exiguobacterium aestuarii (2), Vibrio parahaemolyticus (2), Vibrio alginolyticus (3), Vibrio azureus (2), Vibrio fluvialis (2), Priestia flexa (1), Pseudomonas aeruginosa (2), Bacillus megaterium (2), Lysinibacillus macroides (2) and Bacillus subtilis (1)) of fouling bacteria belonging to six genera.