Engineering Biofilm Structure with a High-Throughput Microfluidic Platform

The Oliveira Lab has implemented a high-throughput syringe pump platform that enables multiple microfluidic biofilm experiments to run in parallel under controlled flow conditions. This setup allows simultaneous testing of different microbial species, environmental conditions, and treatment strategies within microfluidic chips. Biofilms are highly structured microbial communities in which cells organize into complex spatial architectures supported by extracellular polymeric substances (EPS). Previous studies have shown that biofilm structure is heterogeneous and evolves over time, with spatial organization influenced by microbial composition, metabolic activity, and environmental conditions (Paula et al., 2020).

Using phase contrast and fluorescence imaging, we can observe how microbial cells and EPS distributions develop within microfluidic environments. Our platform enables experiments that explore how biofilm architecture emerges under controlled conditions and how structural heterogeneity evolves over time.

We hypothesize that biofilm organization can be actively shaped by the microbial species present, combinations of species within the community, metabolic activities that influence adhesion and growth, and the timing at which organisms are introduced into the microfluidic system. By enabling controlled assembly of microbial communities under flow, this platform provides a powerful framework for investigating engineered biofilms and their spatiotemporal dynamics.