Ion channels enable electrical communication in bacterial communities

Prindle, Arthur; Liu, Jintao; Asally, Munehiro; Ly, San; García-Ojalvo, Jordi; Süel, Gürol M.

doi:10.1038/nature15709

Cited by 645 publications

(716 citation statements)

References 48 publications

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“…Internal and global biofilm architectures are presumably consequences of emergent interactions between individual cell growth, physiological differentiation, secreted proteins, polymers and small molecules, and microenvironmental heterogeneity (21,(26)(27)(28)(29)(30)(31)(32)(33)(34). Attempts to dissect the individual and combined contributions of these factors to biofilm growth have increasingly relied on examination of bacterial communities in microfluidic devices that mimic central features of natural environments (11,35,36).…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Architectural transitions in Vibrio cholerae biofilms at single-cell resolution

Drescher

Dunkel

Nadell

et al. 2016

Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.

193

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Many bacterial species colonize surfaces and form dense 3D structures, known as biofilms, which are highly tolerant to antibiotics and constitute one of the major forms of bacterial biomass on Earth. Bacterial biofilms display remarkable changes during their development from initial attachment to maturity, yet the cellular architecture that gives rise to collective biofilm morphology during growth is largely unknown. Here, we use high-resolution optical microscopy to image all individual cells in Vibrio cholerae biofilms at different stages of development, including colonies that range in size from 2 to 4,500 cells. From these data, we extracted the precise 3D cellular arrangements, cell shapes, sizes, and global morphological features during biofilm growth on submerged glass substrates under flow. We discovered several critical transitions of the internal and external biofilm architectures that separate the major phases of V. cholerae biofilm growth. Optical imaging of biofilms with single-cell resolution provides a new window into biofilm formation that will prove invaluable to understanding the mechanics underlying biofilm development.biofilm | community | self-organization | emergent order | nematic order

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mentioning

confidence: 99%

Architectural transitions in Vibrio cholerae biofilms at single-cell resolution

Drescher

Dunkel

Nadell

et al. 2016

Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.

193

216

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“…Taking a lesson from bacteria, which are also proficient linguists [62], it would not be surprising if parasites employ many other means of communication that still await discovery. Intercellular bridges for the transfer of proteins and nutrients [63,64], or ion channels that propagate waves of electrical signalling between cells [65] are just two possibilities. And given the propensity of parasites to diverge from the mainstream, it would not be surprising if they have developed entirely novel means of encrypting and exchanging information.…”

Section: Multilingual Parasites?mentioning

confidence: 99%

The languages of parasite communication

Roditi

2016

Molecular and Biochemical Parasitology

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Although it is regarded as self-evident that parasites interact with their hosts, with the primary aim of enhancing their own survival and transmission, the extent to which unicellular parasites communicate with each has been severely underestimated.Recent publications show that information is commonly exchanged between parasites of the same species and that this can govern their decisions to divide, to differentiate or to migrate as a group. Communication can take the form of soluble secreted factors, extracellular vesicles or contact between cells. Extracellular parasites can do this directly, while intracellular parasites use the infected host cell -or components derived from it -as an intermediary. By emitting signals that can be dispersed within the host, parasites can also have long-distance effects on the course of an infection and its pathology. This article presents an overview of recent developments in this field and draws attention to some older work that merits re-examination. 3 Most readers of this article will not need to be told that diseases such as sleeping sickness, malaria, Leishmaniasis, Trichomoniasis and Chagas Disease are caused by unicellular parasites. This knowledge might come with the tacit assumption that singlecelled organisms are completely self-sufficient and have no need to interact, much less cooperate, with members of their own species. In recent years, however, it has become apparent that a number of decisions are group decisions that rely on parasites communicating with each other. Just as animals can exchange information in different ways, be it vocally, visually, chemically or by body language, parasites have also developed a range of mechanisms for communicating with each other. This sometimes occurs directly, from parasite to parasite, or by using the infected host cell -or components derived from it -as an intermediary. By emitting signals that can be dispersed within the host, parasites can also have wide-ranging effects on the course of an infection and its pathology. This article presents an overview of recent developments in this field and draws attention to some older work that merits re-examination. Owing to space constraints, it will not cover molecules used by intracellular parasites to reprogram the cells that they infect. Quorum sensing and differentiationDifferent subspecies of Trypanosoma brucei, the pathogens responsible for human sleeping sickness and Nagana in domestic animals, are extracellular throughout their life cycle. In the mammalian host the parasites use a quorum sensing mechanism to maintain a balance between slender bloodstream forms, which are capable of dividing every 6-8 hours, and stumpy bloodstream forms, which cannot divide and have a lifespan of a few days. When trypanosomes ingested by a tsetse fly, the slender form is killed while the stumpy form survives and differentiates to the next life stage, the procyclic form, in the insect midgut [1,2]. If slender forms were to proliferate unchecked, this would result in rapid death of th...

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“…This coordinates metabolic states among cells in the interior and periphery of the biofilm. The report of a community function for potassium ion channels demonstrates the existence of long-range electrical signaling in biofilms (42). Vaughn Cooper (University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, Pittsburgh, PA) shed some light on the evolution of wrinkly small-colony variants during Burkholderia cenocepacia chronic infection.…”

Section: Evolution In Biofilms and The Impact Of The Environment On Bmentioning

confidence: 99%

Biofilms 2015: Multidisciplinary Approaches Shed Light into Microbial Life on Surfaces

et al. 2016

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The 7th ASM Conference on Biofilms was held in Chicago, Illinois, from 24 to 29 October 2015. The conference provided an international forum for biofilm researchers across academic and industry platforms, and from different scientific disciplines, to present and discuss new findings and ideas. The meeting covered a wide range of topics, spanning environmental sciences, applied biology, evolution, ecology, physiology, and molecular biology of the biofilm lifestyle. This report summarizes the presentations with regard to emerging biofilm-related themes.

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Ion channels enable electrical communication in bacterial communities

Cited by 645 publications

References 48 publications

Architectural transitions in Vibrio cholerae biofilms at single-cell resolution

Architectural transitions in Vibrio cholerae biofilms at single-cell resolution

The languages of parasite communication

Biofilms 2015: Multidisciplinary Approaches Shed Light into Microbial Life on Surfaces

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