Focusing quorum sensing signalling by nano-magnetic assembly.

ABSTRACT: Quorum sensing (QS) exists widely among bacteria, enabling a transition to multicellular behaviour after bacterial populations reach a particular density. The coordination of multicellularity enables biotechnological application, dissolution of biofilms, coordination of virulence, and so forth. Here, a method to elicit and subsequently disperse multicellular behaviour among QS-negative cells is developed using magnetic nanoparticle assembly. We fabricated magnetic nanoparticles (MNPs, ∼5 nm) that electrostatically collect wild-type (WT) Escherichia coli BL21 cells and brings them into proximity of bioengineered E. coli [CT104 (W3110 lsrFG- luxS- pCT6 + pET-DsRed)] reporter cells that exhibit a QS response after receiving autoinducer-2 (AI-2). By shortening the distance between WT and repor

SUBMITTER: Guan Y 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6117212 | biostudies-literature | 2018 Jul

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature