Adhesion of bacillus spores in relation to hydrophobicity.

The adhesion of spores of five different Bacillus species to solid surfaces of different hydrophobicity was evaluated. The spore surface hydrophobicity was measured using hydrophobic interaction chromatography (HIC). A large variation in hydrophobicity was found among the spores of the different species tested. The degree of adhesion of spores to the solid surfaces was consistent with the results obtained using the HIC method. The most hydrophobic spores, according to the HIC method, adhered in a much larger extent to the hydrophobic surfaces. Furthermore, spores generally adhered to a greater extent to hydrophobic and hydrophilic surfaces than did the vegetative cells.