Biofilm formation on human immune cells is a multicellular predation strategy of Vibrio cholerae.

ABSTRACT: Biofilm formation is generally recognized as a bacterial defense mechanism against environmental threats, including antibiotics, bacteriophages, and leukocytes of the human immune system. Here, we show that for the human pathogen Vibrio cholerae, biofilm formation is not only a protective trait but also an aggressive trait to collectively predate different immune cells. We find that V. cholerae forms biofilms on the eukaryotic cell surface using an extracellular matrix comprising primarily mannose-sensitive hemagglutinin pili, toxin-coregulated pili, and the secreted colonization factor TcpF, which differs from the matrix composition of biofilms on other surfaces. These biofilms encase immune cells and establish a high local concentration of a secreted hemolysin to kill the immune cells be

SUBMITTER: Vidakovic L 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10256282 | biostudies-literature | 2023 Jun

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature