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Updated: Sep 30, 2025

Anti-virulent Disruption of Pathogenic Biofilms using Engineered Quorum-quenching Lactonases
Published on: January 1, 2016
Innovative Biofouling Control for Membrane Bioreactors in Cold Regions by Inducing Environmental Adaptation in
Sojin Min1, Hosung Lee1, Dowon Chae1
1Department of Environmental and Energy Engineering, Yonsei University, Wonju, Gangwon-do 26439, Republic of Korea.
Abstract:
Bacterial quorum quenching (QQ), whose mechanism involves the degradation of quorum-sensing signal molecules, is an effective strategy for controlling biofouling in membrane bioreactors (MBRs). However, MBRs operated at low temperatures, either due to cold climates or seasonal variations, exhibit severe deterioration in QQ efficiency. In this study, a modified culture method for Rhodococcus sp. BH4, a QQ bacterium, was developed to induce environmental adaptation in cold regions. BH4-L, which was prepared by the modified culture method, showed enhancement in QQ efficiency at low temperatures. The higher QQ efficiency obtained by employing BH4-L at 10 °C (compared with that obtained by employing BH4 at 10 °C) was attributed to the higher live/dead cell ratio in the BH4-L-entrapping beads. When BH4-L-entrapping beads were applied to lab-scale MBRs operated at low temperatures, membrane biofouling in MBRs at low temperatures was successfully mitigated because BH4-L could substantially reduce the concentration of signal molecules (N-acyl homoserine lactones) in the biocake. Employing BH4-L in QQ-MBRs could offer a novel solution to the problem of severe membrane biofouling in MBRs in cold regions.
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