Regulation by cyclic di-GMP attenuates dynamics and enhances robustness of bimodal curli gene activation in Escherichia coli.

ABSTRACT: Curli amyloid fibers are a major constituent of the extracellular biofilm matrix formed by bacteria of the Enterobacteriaceae family. Within Escherichia coli biofilms, curli gene expression is limited to a subpopulation of bacteria, leading to heterogeneity of extracellular matrix synthesis. Here we show that bimodal activation of curli gene expression also occurs in well-mixed planktonic cultures of E. coli, resulting in all-or-none stochastic differentiation into distinct subpopulations of curli-positive and curli-negative cells at the entry into the stationary phase of growth. Stochastic curli activation in individual E. coli cells could further be observed during continuous growth in a conditioned medium in a microfluidic device, which further revealed that the curli-positive state is

SUBMITTER: Lamprecht O 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10212085 | biostudies-literature | 2023 May

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature