Biofilms are a consortium of communities of organisms that live in syntrophic relationships and present a higher organization level than that of individual cells. Biofilms dominate microbial life in streams and rivers, enable crucial ecosystem processes, contribute to global biogeochemical flows and represent the main active bacterial life form. Epilithic biofilms are the main biomass found in rivers; their exposure to contaminants can lead to changes in their structure and composition. The composition of these communities is influenced by physicochemical factors, temperature, light and prior exposure to pollutants, among other factors, and it can be used for water quality monitoring purposes. The heterogenous composition of biofilms enables them to accumulate compounds in an integrative manner. Moreover, the availability of several sorption sites and their likely saturation can contribute to bioaccumulation. In aquatic environments, biofilms are also susceptible to the acquisition of antibiotic resistance genes and participate in their dissemination. Anthropic pressure intensification processes continuously expose water resources and, consequently, biofilm communities to different contamination sources. Therefore, the use of biofilms to indicate environmental pollution is reinforced by the progress of studies on the subject. Biofilm communities’ response to pollutants in aquatic environments can be mainly influenced by the presence of different organisms, which may change due to community development or age. The current research aims to review studies about biofilm contamination and highlight the importance of biofilm use to better evaluate and maintain the quality of water bodies.

生物膜是生活在营养关系中的生物群落的联合体，其组织水平高于单个细胞。生物膜主导着河流和河流中的微生物生命，使关键的生态系统过程得以实现，促进了全球生物地球化学流量，并代表了主要的活跃细菌生命形式。上层生物膜是河流中发现的主要生物质。它们暴露于污染物中会导致其结构和组成发生变化。这些社区的组成受物理化学因素，温度，光照和污染物的事先暴露等因素影响，可用于水质监测。生物膜的异质组成使它们能够以整合的方式积累化合物。此外，几个吸附位的可用性及其可能的饱和度可能会促进生物积累。在水生环境中，生物膜也容易获得抗生素抗性基因并参与其传播。人类压力增强过程不断使水资源暴露，从而使生物膜群落暴露于不同的污染源。因此，关于该主题的研究进展加强了使用生物膜指示环境污染。生物膜群落对水生环境中污染物的反应可能主要受到不同生物体的存在的影响，这些生物体可能会随着社区发展或年龄的变化而变化。