ABSTRACT
A variety of LBRs are typically used in research, and each of them has unique features that make it more suitable for some types of measurements and observations, but also less suitable for other types of measurements and observations. There are no universal LBRs that can satisfy all biofilm researchers and be suitable for all biofilm studies. LBRs that are used to quantify the effects of hydrodynamics on microbial activity in biofilms may not be suitable for quantifying biofilm structure using confocal microscopy and image analysis. LBRs are constructed to satisfy two requirements: (1) to facilitate the biofilm processes under study and (2) to facilitate the measurements characterizing the processes under study. By selecting an LBR for a particular study, the researcher makes several choices, consciously or not, such as which biofilm processes will be emphasized and which will be compromised, and which measurements will be possible and which will not. LBRs imitate various functions of natural biofilm reactors and offer the benefit of studying biofilm processes in isolation, but this benefit also imposes limitations on the relevance of the results, which are directly affected by the choices made by selecting the reactor and the experimental conditions. It is important to be aware of these limitations, even if the researcher later chooses to ignore some of them.
