Autoinducer 2 production by Streptococcus gordonii DL1 and the biofilm phenotype of a luxS mutant are influenced by nutritional conditions.

ABSTRACT: The luxS gene, present in many bacterial genera, encodes the autoinducer 2 (AI-2) synthase. AI-2 has been implicated in bacterial signaling, and this study investigated its role in biofilm formation by Streptococcus gordonii, an organism that colonizes human tooth enamel within the first few hours after professional cleaning. Northern blotting and primer extension analyses revealed that S. gordonii luxS is monocistronic. AI-2 production was dependent on nutritional conditions, and maximum AI-2 induction was detected when S. gordonii was grown in the presence of serum and carbonate. In planktonic cultures, AI-2 production rose sharply during the transition from exponential to stationary phase, and the AI-2 concentration peaked approximately 4 h into stationary phase. An S. gordonii luxS mut

SUBMITTER: Blehert DS 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC166464 | biostudies-literature | 2003 Aug

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature