Surface remodeling and inversion of cell-matrix interactions underlie community recognition and dispersal in Vibrio cholerae biofilms.

ABSTRACT: Biofilms are ubiquitous surface-associated bacterial communities embedded in an extracellular matrix. It is commonly assumed that biofilm cells are glued together by the matrix; however, how the specific biochemistry of matrix components affects the cell-matrix interactions and how these interactions vary during biofilm growth remain unclear. Here, we investigate cell-matrix interactions in Vibrio cholerae, the causative agent of cholera. We combine genetics, microscopy, simulations, and biochemical analyses to show that V. cholerae cells are not attracted to the main matrix component (Vibrio polysaccharide, VPS), but can be attached to each other and to the VPS network through surface-associated VPS and crosslinks formed by the protein Bap1. Downregulation of VPS production and surface tr

SUBMITTER: Moreau A 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC11695861 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature