Abstract
Biofouling is the undesirable accumulation of microorganisms, plants,
algae and animals on submerged structures especially ship hulls.
Biofouling also occurs on the surface of living marine organisms. It is
also found on membrane systems such as membrane bioreactors and reverse
osmosis spiral wound membranes. In the same manner, it is found in
cooling water cycles of large industrial equipments and power stations.
In the present study, totally 11 isolates were obtained from three
ships from Royapuram harbour, Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India. Among the 11
isolates only DR4 showed maximum biofouling activity in the microtiter
plate assay with a significant optical density of 0.596. Also an
attempt was made to characterize the different biofouling bacterial
isolates analyzing their morphological, biochemical and molecular
characteristics. The results of the present study based on the above
characteristics revealed that the isolate DR4 was similar to Bacillus
sp. This study also highlights the need for a safe and natural
antifouling agent to control the biofouling bacteria in the marine
environment.