Division of Labor in Biofilms: the Ecology of Cell Differentiation

Gestel, Jordi van; Vlamakis, Hera; Kolter, Roberto

doi:10.1128/microbiolspec.mb-0002-2014

Cited by 160 publications

(154 citation statements)

References 259 publications

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“…While the advantages of bet hedging do not require interactions between different cell states, population heterogeneity can also support a division of labor whereby distinct individual organisms cooperate for the greater good. A prominent example is found in Bacillus subtilis , where different cell subtypes cooperate to support complex multicellular communities (9–11). …”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Phenotypic Profiling Reveals that Candida albicans Opaque Cells Represent a Metabolically Specialized Cell State Compared to Default White Cells

Ene

Lohse

Vladu

et al. 2016

mBio

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The white-opaque switch is a bistable, epigenetic transition affecting multiple traits in Candida albicans including mating, immunogenicity, and niche specificity. To compare how the two cell states respond to external cues, we examined the fitness, phenotypic switching, and filamentation properties of white cells and opaque cells under 1,440 different conditions at 25°C and 37°C. We demonstrate that white and opaque cells display striking differences in their integration of metabolic and thermal cues, so that the two states exhibit optimal fitness under distinct conditions. White cells were fitter than opaque cells under a wide range of environmental conditions, including growth at various pHs and in the presence of chemical stresses or antifungal drugs. This difference was exacerbated at 37°C, consistent with white cells being the default state of C. albicans in the mammalian host. In contrast, opaque cells showed greater fitness than white cells under select nutritional conditions, including growth on diverse peptides at 25°C. We further demonstrate that filamentation is significantly rewired between the two states, with white and opaque cells undergoing filamentous growth in response to distinct external cues. Genetic analysis was used to identify signaling pathways impacting the white-opaque transition both in vitro and in a murine model of commensal colonization, and three sugar sensing pathways are revealed as regulators of the switch. Together, these findings establish that white and opaque cells are programmed for differential integration of metabolic and thermal cues and that opaque cells represent a more metabolically specialized cell state than the default white state.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Phenotypic Profiling Reveals that Candida albicans Opaque Cells Represent a Metabolically Specialized Cell State Compared to Default White Cells

Ene

Lohse

Vladu

et al. 2016

mBio

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“…10 The process of biolm formation oen involves division of labor, such as the differentiation into distinct cell types within an isogenic population seen in the bacterial species Myxococcus xanthus, Bacillus subtilis and Pseudomonas aeruginosa. 11 In the case of B. subtilis, biolm formation also includes the production of communal goods that form the biolm matrix. 2,12 In the past years, the main matrix composition has been resolved for many bacterial biolms.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Matrix composition determines the dimensions of Bacillus subtilis NCIB 3610 biofilm colonies grown on LB agar

et al. 2017

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The production of biomolecules can provide new functionalities to the synthesizing organism. One important example is the secretion of extracellular polymeric substances (EPS) by biofilm forming bacteria. This biofilm matrix protects the individual bacteria within the biofilm from external stressors such as antibiotics, chemicals and shear flow. Previous studies have determined several main matrix components of biofilms formed by Bacillus subtilis. However, how these matrix components influence the growth behavior and final dimensions of B. subtilis biofilms has not yet been determined. Here, we combine different experimental techniques with theoretical modeling to assess this relation. In particular, we quantify the area covered by the biofilm and the biofilm height by performing time-lapse microscopy and light profilometry, respectively. We study the development of biofilms formed by two wild-type strains (B-1 and NCIB 3610) differing in their matrix composition and NCIB 3610 mutant strains lacking the ability to produce specific EPS. Based on the experimentally obtained growth dynamics, we develop a mathematical model that allows us to quantify the influence of three key biofilm matrix components on the final NCIB 3610 biofilm colony dimensions. In detail, we show that two matrix components, the exopolysaccharide produced by the epsA-O operon and the surface layer protein BslA control the area covered by the biofilm colony. The height of these mature biofilm colonies is mostly affected by BslA.Together, our results emphasize the importance of the biofilm matrix composition for biofilm growth and the final dimensions of mature B. subtilis NCIB 3610 biofilm colonies.

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“…This environmental change is detected by a set of sensor kinases, which in turn, activate a phosphorylation cascade. This cascade appears to be a major part of a regulatory circuit responsible for pushing the cell towards one or another behavior, depending on the severity of the nutrient depletion and other environmental and cell-internal factors (106–108). Sporulation is one such choice.…”

Section: The Spore As An Infectious Particlementioning

confidence: 99%

Surviving Between Hosts: Sporulation and Transmission

Swick¹,

Koehler²,

Driks

2016

Microbiol Spectr

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To survive adverse conditions, some bacterial species are capable of developing into a cell type, the “spore,” which exhibits minimal metabolic activity and remains viable in the presence of multiple environmental challenges. For some pathogenic bacteria, this developmental state serves as a means of survival during transmission from one host to another. Spores are the highly infectious form of these bacteria. Upon entrance into a host, specific signals facilitate germination into metabolically active replicating organisms, resulting in disease pathogenesis. In this article, we will review spore structure and function in well-studied pathogens of two genera, Bacillus and Clostridium , focusing on Bacillus anthracis and Clostridium difficile , and explore current data regarding the lifestyles of these bacteria outside the host and transmission from one host to another.

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Division of Labor in Biofilms: the Ecology of Cell Differentiation

Cited by 160 publications

References 259 publications

Phenotypic Profiling Reveals that Candida albicans Opaque Cells Represent a Metabolically Specialized Cell State Compared to Default White Cells

Phenotypic Profiling Reveals that Candida albicans Opaque Cells Represent a Metabolically Specialized Cell State Compared to Default White Cells

Matrix composition determines the dimensions of Bacillus subtilis NCIB 3610 biofilm colonies grown on LB agar

Surviving Between Hosts: Sporulation and Transmission

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