USENET newsgroup name:	bionet.microbiology.biofilms

Status:			Moderated

One line Description:	Research on microbial biofilms

Moderation address:	bionet-microbiology-biofilms@net.bio.net
				(biofilms-moderator@net.bio.net 
				is an alias for
				bionet-microbiology-biofilms@net.bio.net)

Moderators:			Claus Sternberg
                                Bob McLean
				Robert J. Palmer, Jr.
 
Mailing list name: 	BIOFILMS

e-mail address:		biofilms@net.bio.net

Newsgroup character:

Definition of microbial biofilms: Microbial biofilms are layers
(sometimes only one) of microorganisms associated with a surface of
some kind. The organisms in a biofilm may be a single species or
multiple species. The organisms may for example be bacteria, yeasts or
protozoans, or combinations. The surfaces may be solid surfaces such
as metals, glass, plastics, or dentin, or may be less well defined,
such as soil particles, or plant tissue surfaces. The association to
the surfaces may be tight, by direct binding, or loose, such as cells
residing in gelatinous matrices.

bionet.microbiology.biofilms is a forum for scientific
discussions/questions regarding all aspects of the science related to
microbial biofilms, including but not limited to biofilm initial
events, formation, maintenance and breakdown, genetic and
physiological aspects of microorganisms in biofilms or organisms
isolated from biofilms, role of biofilms in pathogenesis, in
industrial applications, and as a tool in teaching.

The Biofilms newsgroup will provide:

A forum to discuss concepts, problems and recent developments in the field
of microbial biofilms.

A forum to discuss development of laboratory systems for growing,
inspecting and in-depth analysis of microbial biofilms.

A forum to discuss the role of biofilm science in education.

A bulletin board for announcements of meetings, funding sources and job
opportunities.

A communication source for sharing mutants, strains, molecular probes, etc.

Opportunities for collaborative efforts between labs at different locations
and/or between industrial and academic research labs. The forum will also
provide opportunities to exchange new ideas concerning the teaching of
microbiology, and curricular design, as well as the education of the public
about the benefits and/or hazards of microbial biofilms.

A list of frequently asked questions (FAQ) concerning microbial biofilms
should be created with the joint efforts of the newsgroup members, and kept
in an electronic form accessible for anyone. 

A list of pointers to other interesting related resources in the form of a
world-wide-web page (http://www.im.dtu.dk/biofilms/).

Further remarks:

The newsgroup encourages the participation of both academic and industrial
affiliated individuals or organizations, and anyone else with an interest
in microbial biofilms. 

Discussions should as a general rule be conducted in the newsgroup, rather 
than being continued by private e-mail. Only when discussions take a 
personal turn which obviously is of interest only to the persons involved, 
it should proceed privately by e-mail.

General questions about confocal microscopy: Confocal microscopy is an
important tool for many people working in the biofilm field, but technical
questions concerning this technique of microscopy should be directed to the
newsgroup on this topic (bit.listserv.confocal; Send an e-mail to
listserv@listserv.buffalo.edu with the message (ignore subject): 
subscribe confocal "Your Name").

Moderation Policy:  

Mass-posted commercial messages, chain letters, and similar postings
not germane to microbial biofilms will be deleted without comment.
Inappropriate messages posted in good faith will be returned to the
sender.  Messages not strictly within the charter but likely to be of
interest to many subscribers will be accepted.  Use of the newsgroup
for commercial purposes is prohibited.


Claus Sternberg, PhD                                           
Department of Microbiology   Technical University of Denmark   
Building 301                 DK 2800 Lyngby Denmark            
Phone: (+45) 45 25 25 15     FAX: (+45) 45 93 28 09            
E-mail: cs@im.dtu.dk                                           

Bob McLean
Department of Biology
Southwest Texas State University, Texas
email: RM12@swt.edu

Robert J. Palmer, Jr.
Institute for Applied Microbiology
University of Knoxville, Tensessee.
email: rjpalmer@MAILHOST.CAS.UTK.EDU