Bacterial Signaling Ecology and Potential Applications During Aquatic Biofilm Construction

Vega, Leticia; Alvarez, Pedro J. J.; McLean, Robert

doi:10.1007/s00248-013-0321-1

Cited by 11 publications

(5 citation statements)

References 123 publications

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“…Since QS has been reported to occur under flow conditions in Nature 19 28 , we asked how our findings in engineered E . coli compare to the natural system in P .…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 96%

“…In nature, biofilms are prevalent in rivers, streams, intertidal regions, sinking marine particles and groundwater flow 16 17 18 . In clinical settings, biofilms form on flow-exposed catheters and implants 19 . Biofilms in the human body can experience a multitude of fluid flow regimes ranging from interstitial flow in lymphatic microvessels 20 to laminar flow in the intestine 21 , the microvasculature 22 , and the urinary tract 23 .…”

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confidence: 99%

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Resilience of bacterial quorum sensing against fluid flow

Emge

Moeller

Jang

et al. 2016

Sci Rep

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Quorum sensing (QS) is a population-density dependent chemical process that enables bacteria to communicate based on the production, secretion and sensing of small inducer molecules. While recombinant constructs have been widely used to decipher the molecular details of QS, how those findings translate to natural QS systems has remained an open question. Here, we compare the activation of natural and synthetic Pseudomonas aeruginosa LasI/R QS systems in bacteria exposed to quiescent conditions and controlled flows. Quantification of QS-dependent GFP expression in suspended cultures and in surface-attached microcolonies revealed that QS onset in both systems was similar under quiescent conditions but markedly differed under flow. Moderate flow (Pe > 25) was sufficient to suppress LasI/R QS recombinantly expressed in Escherichia coli, whereas only high flow (Pe > 102) suppressed QS in wild-type P. aeruginosa. We suggest that this difference stems from the differential production of extracellular matrix and that the matrix confers resilience against moderate flow to QS in wild-type organisms. These results suggest that the expression of a biofilm matrix extends the environmental conditions under which QS-based cell-cell communication is effective and that findings from synthetic QS circuits cannot be directly translated to natural systems.

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“…Since QS has been reported to occur under flow conditions in Nature 19 28 , we asked how our findings in engineered E . coli compare to the natural system in P .…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 96%

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Resilience of bacterial quorum sensing against fluid flow

Emge

Moeller

Jang

et al. 2016

Sci Rep

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“…Subsequent studies have shown quorum-signalling inhibition to be present in other plants (Gao et al , 2003) and marine invertebrates (Manefield et al , 2000), as well as other micro-organisms (Golberg et al , 2013). Mechanisms involved in quorum-signalling inhibition [reviewed by Vega et al (2014)] include the production of quorum-signalling-inhibiting compounds such as furanones (de Nys et al , 2006) produced by D. pulchra and enzymic degradation (quorum quenching) of the signal (Wang & Leadbetter, 2005). In a recent study, we observed that Escherichia coli enhanced its survival by producing indole during growth as a mixed culture with Pseudomonas aeruginosa (Chu et al , 2012).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Indole inhibition of N-acylated homoserine lactone-mediated quorum signalling is widespread in Gram-negative bacteria

et al. 2014

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The LuxI/R quorum-sensing system and its associated N-acylated homoserine lactone (AHL) signal is widespread among Gram-negative bacteria. Although inhibition by indole of AHL quorum signalling in Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Acinetobacter oleivorans has been reported previously, it has not been documented among other species. Here, we show that co-culture with wild-type Escherichia coli, but not with E. coli tnaA mutants that lack tryptophanase and as a result do not produce indole, inhibits AHL-regulated pigmentation in Chromobacterium violaceum (violacein), Pseudomonas chlororaphis (phenazine) and Serratia marcescens (prodigiosin). Loss of pigmentation also occurred during pure culture growth of Chro. violaceum, P. chlororaphis and S. marcescens in the presence of physiologically relevant indole concentrations (0.5-1.0 mM). Inhibition of violacein production by indole was counteracted by the addition of the Chro. violaceum cognate autoinducer, N-decanoyl homoserine lactone (C10-HSL), in a dosedependent manner. The addition of exogenous indole or co-culture with E. coli also affected Chro. violaceum transcription of vioA (violacein pigment production) and chiA (chitinase production), but had no effect on pykF (pyruvate kinase), which is not quorum regulated. Chro. violaceum AHL-regulated elastase and chitinase activity were inhibited by indole, as was motility. Growth of Chro. violaceum was not affected by indole or C10-HSL supplementation. Using a nematodefeeding virulence assay, we observed that survival of Caenorhabditis elegans exposed to Chro. violaceum, P. chlororaphis and S. marcescens was enhanced during indole supplementation. Overall, these studies suggest that indole represents a general inhibitor of AHL-based quorum signalling in Gram-negative bacteria.

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“…The first formation process of biofilm is the adhesion of free bacteria to biological or non‐biological surfaces. Once firmly attached, the bacteria promptly gather together, which was often mediated by quorum sensing, two‐component systems or c‐di‐GMP‐mediated regulation (Vega et al ., 2014). The fixed bacteria then secrete extracellular polysaccharides to form a mixed extracellular matrix with open water channels.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Cadmium sulfide nanoparticle biomineralization and biofilm formation mediate cadmium resistance of the deep‐sea bacterium Pseudoalteromonas sp. MT33b

Sun

2021

Environ Microbiol Rep

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Cadmium (Cd) is a common toxic heavy metal in the environment, and bacteria have evolved different strategies to deal with Cd toxicity. Here, a bacterium designated Pseudoalteromonas sp. MT33b possessing strong Cd resistance was isolated from the Mariana Trench sediments. Supplement of cysteine significantly increased bacterial Cd resistance and removal rate. Biofilm formation was demonstrated to play a positive role toward bacterial Cd resistance. Transcriptome analysis showed the supplement of cysteine effectively prevented Cd 2+ from entering bacterial cells, promoted saccharide metabolism and thereby facilitating energy production, which consists well with bacterial growth trend analysed under the same conditions. Notably, the expressions of many biofilm formation related genes including flagellar assembly, signal transduction, bacterial secretion and TonB-dependent transfer system were significantly upregulated when facing Cd stress, indicating their important roles in determining bacterial biofilm formation and enhancing Cd resistance. Overall, this study indicates the formation of insoluble CdS precipitates and massive biofilm is the major strategy adopted by Pseudoalteromonas sp. MT33b to eliminate Cd stress. Our results provide a good model to investigate how heavy metals impact biofilm formation in the deep-sea ecosystems, which may facilitate a deeper understanding of microbial environmental adaptability and better utilization of these microbes for bioremediation purposes in the future.

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Bacterial Signaling Ecology and Potential Applications During Aquatic Biofilm Construction

Cited by 11 publications

References 123 publications

Resilience of bacterial quorum sensing against fluid flow

Resilience of bacterial quorum sensing against fluid flow

Indole inhibition of N-acylated homoserine lactone-mediated quorum signalling is widespread in Gram-negative bacteria

Cadmium sulfide nanoparticle biomineralization and biofilm formation mediate cadmium resistance of the deep‐sea bacterium Pseudoalteromonas sp. MT33b

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