Methodology for estimating numbers of free-living and attached bacteria in estuarine water
Clarke, K.R.; Joint, I.R. (1986). Methodology for estimating numbers of free-living and attached bacteria in estuarine water. Appl. Environ. Microbiol. 51(5): 1110-1120
In: Applied and Environmental Microbiology. American Society for Microbiology: Washington. ISSN 0099-2240; e-ISSN 1098-5336, more
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| Keywords |
Measurement
Measuring methods
Microorganisms > Bacteria
Particulates > Suspended particulate matter
Population characteristics > Population density
Suspended matter
Water bodies > Coastal waters > Coastal landforms > Coastal inlets > Estuaries
Marine/Coastal |
| Abstract |
A fundamental problem in estuarine microbiology studies is the accurate determination of the density in the water column of both free-living bacteria and those attached to suspended particulate matter. When a water sample is filtered and the filter is viewed by epifluorescence microscopy, counts can be made of the number of bacteria which are seen on the filter background (free-living) and those which appear to lie on sediment particles (both free-living and attached). With only the additional knowledge of the proportion of the filter area covered by particles (a quantity that is straightforwardly determined by stereological point counting), results from geometric probability were used to determine the expected number of bacteria which are hidden by particles and hence to provide an estimation scheme for the true densities of free-living and attached bacteria. |
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