Marine biofilm and seawater metagenome

The early bacterial biofilm population of copper-treated marine vessels plays an important role, forming a thin layer of organic matter that traps nutrients from the water and protects other colonizers by blocking the toxic antifouling (AF) coatings. Metagenomic sequencing with Pacific Biosciences (PacBio) HiFi sequencing was performed on biofilm from copper surface and seawater. We studied the factors that drive the colonization of copper surfaces using a metagenomic sequencing approach to analyze the microbial diversity and potential functional abilities of initial biofilm communities on copper surfaces.