Journal
SCIENCE
Volume 328, Issue 5978, Pages 627-629Publisher
AMER ASSOC ADVANCEMENT SCIENCE
DOI: 10.1126/science.1188628
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Funding
- NIH [GM58213, GM086258, CA24487, GM18546]
- BASF
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Bacteria form communities known as biofilms, which disassemble over time. In our studies outlined here, we found that, before biofilm disassembly, Bacillus subtilis produced a factor that prevented biofilm formation and could break down existing biofilms. The factor was shown to be a mixture of D-leucine, D-methionine, D-tyrosine, and D-tryptophan that could act at nanomolar concentrations. D-Amino acid treatment caused the release of amyloid fibers that linked cells in the biofilm together. Mutants able to form biofilms in the presence of D-Amino acids contained alterations in a protein (YqxM) required for the formation and anchoring of the fibers to the cell. D-Amino acids also prevented biofilm formation by Staphylococcus aureus and Pseudomonas aeruginosa. D-amino acids are produced by many bacteria and, thus, may be a widespread signal for biofilm disassembly.
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