This Article
Right arrow Full Text
Right arrow Full Text (PDF)
Right arrow Alert me when this article is cited
Right arrow Alert me if a correction is posted
Services
Right arrow Similar articles in this journal
Right arrow Similar articles in PubMed
Right arrow Alert me to new issues of the journal
Right arrow Download to citation manager
Right arrowReprints and Permissions
Right arrow Copyright Information
Right arrow Books from ASM Press
Right arrow MicrobeWorld
Citing Articles
Right arrow Citing Articles via HighWire
Right arrow Citing Articles via Google Scholar
Google Scholar
Right arrow Articles by Liu, X.
Right arrow Articles by Ferenci, T.
Right arrow Search for Related Content
PubMed
Right arrow PubMed Citation
Right arrow Articles by Liu, X.
Right arrow Articles by Ferenci, T.

 Previous Article  |  Next Article 

Journal of Bacteriology, August 2000, p. 4158-4164, Vol. 182, No. 15
0021-9193/00/$04.00+0
Copyright © 2000, American Society for Microbiology. All rights reserved.

Global Adaptations Resulting from High Population Densities in Escherichia coli Cultures

XueQiao Liu, Christina Ng, and Thomas Ferenci*

Department of Microbiology, University of Sydney, Sydney, New South Wales, 2006, Australia

Received 27 March 2000/Accepted 15 May 2000

The scope of population density effects was investigated in steady-state continuous cultures of Escherichia coli in the absence of complications caused by transient environmental conditions and growth rates. Four distinct bacterial properties reflecting major regulatory and physiological circuits were analyzed. The metabolome profile of bacteria growing at high density contained major differences from low-density cultures. The 10-fold-elevated level of trehalose at higher densities pointed to the increased role of the RpoS sigma factor, which controls trehalose synthesis genes as well as the general stress response. There was an eightfold difference in RpoS levels between bacteria grown at 108 and at 109 cells/ml. In contrast, the cellular content of the DNA binding protein H-NS, controlling many genes in concert with RpoS, was decreased by high density. Since H-NS and RpoS also influence porin gene expression, the influence of population density on the intricate regulation of outer membrane composition was also investigated. High culture densities were found to strongly repress ompF porin transcription, with a sharp threshold at a density of 4.4 × 108 cells/ml, while increasing the proportion of OmpC in the outer membrane. The density-dependent regulation of ompF was maintained in rpoS or hns mutants and so was independent of these regulators. The consistently dramatic changes indicate that actively growing, high-density cultures are at least as differentiated from low-density cultures as are exponential- from stationary-phase bacteria.

* Corresponding author. Mailing address: Department of Microbiology G08, University of Sydney, Sydney, N.S.W. 2006, Australia. Phone: 61-2-9351-4277. Fax: 61-2-9351-4571. E-mail: t.ferenci{at}microbio.usyd.edu.au.

Journal of Bacteriology, August 2000, p. 4158-4164, Vol. 182, No. 15
0021-9193/00/$04.00+0
Copyright © 2000, American Society for Microbiology. All rights reserved.


This article has been cited by other articles:

  • van der Hoeven, R., Forst, S. (2009). OpnS, an Outer Membrane Porin of Xenorhabdus nematophila, Confers a Competitive Advantage for Growth in the Insect Host. J. Bacteriol. 191: 5471-5479 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Nagano, K., Nikaido, H. (2009). Kinetic behavior of the major multidrug efflux pump AcrB of Escherichia coli. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 106: 5854-5858 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Ahmed, N. A. A. M., Petersen, F. C., Scheie, A. A. (2007). AI-2 quorum sensing affects antibiotic susceptibility in Streptococcus anginosus. J Antimicrob Chemother 60: 49-53 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • King, T., Seeto, S., Ferenci, T. (2006). Genotype-by-Environment Interactions Influencing the Emergence of rpoS Mutations in Escherichia coli Populations. Genetics 172: 2071-2079 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Denef, V. J., Patrauchan, M. A., Florizone, C., Park, J., Tsoi, T. V., Verstraete, W., Tiedje, J. M., Eltis, L. D. (2005). Growth Substrate- and Phase-Specific Expression of Biphenyl, Benzoate, and C1 Metabolic Pathways in Burkholderia xenovorans LB400. J. Bacteriol. 187: 7996-8005 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Ihssen, J., Egli, T. (2004). Specific growth rate and not cell density controls the general stress response in Escherichia coli. Microbiology 150: 1637-1648 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Sharma, M., Beuchat, L. R. (2004). Sensitivity of Escherichia coli O157:H7 to Commercially Available Alkaline Cleaners and Subsequent Resistance to Heat and Sanitizers. Appl. Environ. Microbiol. 70: 1795-1803 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Jeong, K. J., Lee, S. Y. (2002). Excretion of Human {beta}-Endorphin into Culture Medium by Using Outer Membrane Protein F as a Fusion Partner in Recombinant Escherichia coli. Appl. Environ. Microbiol. 68: 4979-4985 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Vulic, M., Kolter, R. (2002). Alcohol-Induced Delay of Viability Loss in Stationary-Phase Cultures of Escherichia coli. J. Bacteriol. 184: 2898-2905 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Li, Y.-H., N. Hanna, M., Svensater, G., Ellen, R. P., Cvitkovitch, D. G. (2001). Cell Density Modulates Acid Adaptation in Streptococcus mutans: Implications for Survival in Biofilms. J. Bacteriol. 183: 6875-6884 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Liu, X., Ferenci, T. (2001). An analysis of multifactorial influences on the transcriptional control of ompF and ompC porin expression under nutrient limitation. Microbiology 147: 2981-2989 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Watkins, S. M, Hammock, B. D, Newman, J. W, German, J B. (2001). Individual metabolism should guide agriculture toward foods for improved health and nutrition. Am. J. Clin. Nutr. 74: 283-286 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Vuli, M., Kolter, R. (2001). Evolutionary Cheating in Escherichia coli Stationary Phase Cultures. Genetics 158: 519-526 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Flower, A. M. (2001). SecG Function and Phospholipid Metabolism in Escherichia coli. J. Bacteriol. 183: 2006-2012 [Abstract] [Full Text]  


Copyright © 2009 by the American Society for Microbiology.   For an alternate route to Journals.ASM.org, visit: http://intl-journals.asm.org | More Info»