Dr. Anna Sandark and Dr. Anja Černoša, InnoRenew CoE, UP IAM researchers, together with Dr. José Manuel Amigo, from the University of the Basque Country and Dr. Fatima Matroodi, from Elettra Sincrotrone Trieste, recently published a scientific article “Spectroscopic Insights into Nutrient-Controlled Biofilm Formation in Aureobasidium pullulans as a Basis for Engineered Living Materials”  in Langmuir ASC Publications.

The study investigates the chemical composition and structural organization of Aureobasidium pullulans biofilms grown under different nutrient conditions using FT-IR, FT-NIR and Raman spectroscopy. The results demonstrate that nutrient conditions have a stronger influence on biofilm composition than strain identity. While nutrient-rich media produced largely conserved biofilm profiles, nutrient-poor conditions caused pronounced changes in polysaccharide, protein and lipid components, as well as in matrix organization and hydration.

This research highlights the potential of controlling nutrient composition and growth conditions to tune biofilm properties and supports the development of engineered living materials and next-generation living coatings, where composition, structure and functionality can be dynamically influenced through environmental conditions.

This work was supported through the ARCHI-SKIN project funded by the European Research Council (ERC) and the REMEDY project funded by the European Innovation Council (EIC).