Biofilm is produced when a bacteria’s environment becomes hostile and uses biofilm as protection from the environment. In this work, we investigate the biofilm formation of Bacillus subtilis bacteria within minimal biofilm-promoting media (MSgg media) and how optical trapping affects bacteria aggregation and biofilm development. In low-nutrition media, B. subtilis secretes a glue-like substance and ultimately forms a biofilm. We use an optical tweezers system to observe bacteria division, reorganization, aggregation, and clustering with and without optical trapping. The study of optically controlled biofilm formation enables us to create novel models for inducing and suppressing biofilm development with lasers.
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