Laser engineering of microbial systems: a new tool for microbiology

One of the new areas of laser bioprinting is laser engineering of microbial systems (LEMS). This technology involves controlled transfer of gel microdroplets containing microorganisms from a donor substrate to acceptor media using a nanosecond laser pulse. During such transfer, living systems are affected by various physical factors: radiation, shock waves, temperature surges. The work carried out a study of the effect on Escherichia coli cells of nanoparticles that are formed during the destruction of a thin gold absorbent coating of the donor plate. It has been shown that the sizes of these nanoparticles, their concentration in the colloid, and the zeta-potential depend significantly on the laser pulse energy. It has been established that Au nanoparticles have a certain effect on the kinetics of microbial growth. A systematization of the main physical factors influencing microorganisms during their laser-induced spatial transfer has been carried out, and the most important scientific results from a practical point of view obtained using promising LEMS technology have been analyzed.