BACTERIAL LOSS AND DEGRADATION OF BACTERIAL-MEMBRANE IN PRESERVED SEAWATER SAMPLES

The present study reports the loss of bacteria in four samples preserv ed with formaldehyde and stored at 4 degrees C in the dark, The degrad ation of bacterial membrane was estimated by BacLight probe and relate d to storage time, bacterial loss and attachment to the bottle surface , The concentration of bacteria decreased sharply in the first week of storage in two out of the four samples, After 3 months of storage, th e final concentrations of bacteria were between 30 and 63% of the init ial concentration in three out of the four samples, A linear decrease in the ratio of intact bacteria of 6-8% over a 10 day period was obser ved. The attachment of bacteria onto the bottle surface did not seem t o play an important role in bacterial loss, The results of this study suggested that bacteria in seawater samples should be enumerated as so on as possible after sampling, in order to minimise error. (C) 1998 El sevier Science Ltd, All rights reserved.