Redox metabolites signal polymicrobial biofilm development via the NapA oxidative stress cascade in Aspergillus.

ABSTRACT:

Background

Filamentous fungi and bacteria form mixed-species biofilms in nature and diverse clinical contexts. They secrete a wealth of redox-active small molecule secondary metabolites, which are traditionally viewed as toxins that inhibit growth of competing microbes.

Results

Here, we report that these "toxins" can act as interspecies signals, affecting filamentous fungal development via oxidative stress regulation. Specifically, in coculture biofilms, Pseudomonas aeruginosa phenazine-derived metabolites differentially modulated Aspergillus fumigatus development, shifting from weak vegetative growth to induced asexual sporulation (conidiation) along a decreasing phenazine gradient. The A. fumigatus morphological shift correlated with the production of phenazine radicals an

SUBMITTER: Zheng H 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4286458 | biostudies-literature | 2015 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature