Roles of autoinducer-2 mediated quorum sensing in wastewater treatment

Abstract

Quorum sensing (QS) is considered to be a promising regulation method for biological wastewater treatment (WWT) due to its regulation in extracellular substances (EPS) production, biofilm formation, granulation, colonization and bacterial activity and stability. Recently, autoinducer-2 (AI-2), a kind of interspecies communication QS signal molecule, is increasingly reported for its roles in regulating bacterial gene expression and aggregation. Consequentially, AI-2 mediated QS system is considered as a promising regulatory approach in WWT processes. This article systematically reviews the effects of AI-2-mediated QS system on bacterial behavior and its high potential for real-world applications in different WWT systems. Given the extensive presence of AI-2, AI-2 mediated QS could cooperate with other signal molecules in WWT processes, which suggests that the interactions among multiple signal molecules might be underestimated in the previous studies. The differences between AI-2 and AHL signaling molecules are also compared. Furthermore, the attempts of AI-2 regulated QS in pollution control of different WWT systems are summarized, while some challenges and defects are still required targeted research in the future.

Constructions of quorum sensing signaling network for activated sludge microbial community

“…It fosters a range of pairwise interactions, including neutral relationships, commensalism, amensalism, predation, cooperation, and competition, all mediated by various QS signals [ 65 ]. This Interspecies QS modulation directly influences bacterial physiology by regulating the expression of pertinent genes, thereby shaping the overall community structure [ 66 ].…”