Formation Of Bacterial Biofilms

PosizioneFormation of bacterial biofilms in food: identification and characterisationBiofilms are communities of microorganisms attached to surfaces, enclosed in a protective matrix.
In food, these biofilms are critical because they can harbour pathogens, increasing the risk of foodborne illnesses.
Their resistance to disinfectants makes them difficult to eliminate, compromising food safety.
Additionally, biofilms can negatively impact food quality by altering its taste, texture, and shelf life.
Therefore, understanding and controlling biofilms is essential for the food industry to ensure safe and high-quality products.In this project, we will analyse the biofilm-forming capacity of bacteria isolated from food, whose genomes have been sequenced and are part of our microorganism collection.
To do this, we will grow these isolates under various static and dynamic conditions at temperatures relevant to the food industry, and we will analyse changes in their behaviour.The project objectives are:• Identification of possible genes of interest related to biofilm formation using bioinformatics tools.• Characterisation of biofilm growth when exposed to different antimicrobial components.• Analysis of gene expression of the previously identified genes using molecular techniques (RT-qPCR).Caratteristiche del candidatoLingue straniereE' richiesta la conoscenza di almeno una delle seguenti lingueInglese: buono (B2-C1)Spagnolo: buono (B2-C1)Esperienze lavorative precedentiUndergrad, graduate or Master.
Work will be adjusted attending to the student level.Titoli preferenzialiBasic microbiology knowledge.Area disciplinareingegneria