Department of Biology, New Mexico State University, Las Cruces, NM 88003-8001, USA.
FEMS Microbiol Ecol. 2012 Sep;81(3):562-73. doi: 10.1111/j.1574-6941.2012.01386.x. Epub 2012 May 21.
Biofilms are increasingly recognized as being the predominant form for survival for most bacteria in the environment. The successful colonization of Vibrio fischeri in its squid host Euprymna tasmanica involves complex microbe-host interactions mediated by specific genes that are essential for biofilm formation and colonization. Here, structural and regulatory genes were selected to study their role in biofilm formation and host colonization. We have mutated several genes (pilT, pilU, flgF, motY, ibpA and mifB) by an insertional inactivation strategy. The results demonstrate that structural genes responsible for synthesis of type IV pili and flagella are crucial for biofilm formation and host infection. Moreover, regulatory genes affect colony aggregation by various mechanisms, including alteration of synthesis of transcriptional factors and regulation of extracellular polysaccharide production. These results reflect the significance of how genetic alterations influence communal behavior, which is important in understanding symbiotic relationships.
生物膜越来越被认为是环境中大多数细菌生存的主要形式。发光弧菌在其鱿鱼宿主 tasmanica 中成功定植涉及到复杂的微生物-宿主相互作用，这些相互作用由特定基因介导，这些基因对于生物膜形成和定植是必不可少的。在这里，选择结构基因和调节基因来研究它们在生物膜形成和宿主定植中的作用。我们通过插入失活策略突变了几个基因（pilT、pilU、flgF、motY、ibpA 和 mifB）。结果表明，负责合成 IV 型菌毛和鞭毛的结构基因对于生物膜形成和宿主感染至关重要。此外，调节基因通过各种机制影响菌落聚集，包括改变转录因子的合成和调节细胞外多糖的产生。这些结果反映了遗传改变如何影响群居行为的重要性，这对于理解共生关系很重要。
