Scientists Create New Method to identify Power Producing Bacteria

Scientists from the US have created a new method to identify power producing bacteria. The team from the University of California and MIT have carried out an experiment in order to find the new method. The technique involved studies on a handful of bacteria and gauges a particular property related to their potential to generate electricity.

As per the team, the technique is called as microfluidicdielectrophoresis and the property is called as polarisability.

To create the new method, the researchers used microfluidic chips to mount and channel the bacteria with it. After that, the bacteria were put in an electric field. But there was an enhanced electric field in the center of the fieldin order to develop a gradient with the surroundings. It was done by pinching the middle of the chip (reducing the width by 100 times).

Dielectrophoresis was developed within the gradient. It is a phenomenon that drifts the cells away from the direction which is induced by the applied electric field. The cells stop or are repelled on their tracks due to polarisability of the bacteria. The bacteria with the highest polarisability found to be more electrochemically active. With that, the researchers identified the type of bacteria which could have important electrical properties.

 After the experiment, the team studied different varieties of bacteria which included the bio-engineered ones and jotted down their electrical properties.

The new method is less invasive, hence more effective than the older ones. The research work was published in the journal Science Advances.