Journal
CELL
Volume 168, Issue 1-2, Pages 200-+Publisher
CELL PRESS
DOI: 10.1016/j.cell.2016.12.014
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Funding
- San Diego Center for Systems Biology [NIH P50 GM085764]
- National Science Foundation [MCB-1616755, MCB-1450867 50867]
- NIH, National Institute of General Medical Sciences [R01 GM121888]
- Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency [HR0011-16-2-0035]
- Howard Hughes Medical Institute-Simons Foundation Faculty Scholars program
- UCSD Cellular and Molecular Genetics Training Program through an institutional grant from the National Institute of General Medicine [T32 GM007240]
- Simons Foundation Fellowship of the Helen Hay Whitney Foundation
- Burroughs Wellcome Fund
- ONR [N00014-16-1-2093]
- Direct For Biological Sciences
- Div Of Molecular and Cellular Bioscience [1616755] Funding Source: National Science Foundation
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Bacteria residing within biofilm communities can coordinate their behavior through cell-to-cell signaling. However, it remains unclear if these signals can also influence the behavior of distant cells that are not part of the community. Using a microfluidic approach, we find that potassium ion channel-mediated electrical signaling generated by a Bacillus subtilis biofilm can attract distant cells. Integration of experiments and mathematical modeling indicates that extracellular potassium emitted from the biofilm alters the membrane potential of distant cells, thereby directing their motility. This electrically mediated attraction appears to be a generic mechanism that enables cross-species interactions, as Pseudomonas aeruginosa cells also become attracted to the electrical signal released by the B. subtilis biofilm. Cells within a biofilm community can thus not only coordinate their own behavior but also influence the behavior of diverse bacteria at a distance through long-range electrical signaling.
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