Kombucha Cultures Could Be the Key to Better Water Filters

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A study found that filtration membranes formed from SCOBYs are more effective at preventing bacterial growth than commercial equivalents.

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out of SCOBYs that could one day be used as biosensors. These materials could help purify water or detect damage to "smart" packing materials. The scientists couldn't use the wild yeasts typically used in kombucha because the yeasts are difficult to modify genetically. Instead, the researchers used lab-grown yeast, specifically a strain called, or brewer's yeast.

And now we have the possibility of SCOBY-based water filters. According to the authors of this latest paper, contaminated drinking water has been linked to 2,000 deaths of children globally each day. Commercial polymer-based filters are compact and versatile, and they can strain off many dangerous contaminants, including bacteria, parasites, and even some viruses.

The researchers then placed the mixture in a temperature-controlled room for 10-12 days until a thick membrane formed on the mixture's surface. The grown membranes were stored in deionized water and used in experiments within eight days. The 20 liters of raw water samples for the experiments were taken from the three drinking water treatment plants in Butte, Montana: Basin Creek Reservoir, Moulton Reservoir, and Big Hole River.

Both the LFMs and polymer-based filters, the researchers discovered, became clogged over time, causing them to flow and filter more slowly. The LFMs used in the experiments, however, showed between 19 and 40 percent better performance than their commercial counterparts on that score. The SCOBY-based LFMs were also more resistant to befouling. While biofilms eventually formed, fewer microorganisms were found in those films..

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