This Article
Right arrow Full Text
Right arrow Full Text (PDF)
Right arrow Supplemental material
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
Google Scholar
Right arrow Articles by Mueller, R. S.
Right arrow Articles by Bartlett, D. H.
PubMed
Right arrow PubMed Citation
Right arrow Articles by Mueller, R. S.
Right arrow Articles by Bartlett, D. H.

 Previous Article  |  Next Article 

Journal of Bacteriology, June 2009, p. 3504-3516, Vol. 191, No. 11
0021-9193/09/$08.00+0     doi:10.1128/JB.01240-08
Copyright © 2009, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.

Indole Acts as an Extracellular Cue Regulating Gene Expression in Vibrio cholerae{triangledown} ,{dagger}

Ryan S. Mueller,1 Sinem Beyhan,2 Simran G. Saini,1 Fitnat H. Yildiz,2 and Douglas H. Bartlett1*

Marine Biology Research Division, Scripps Institution of Oceanography, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, California 92037,1 Department of Environmental Toxicology, University of California, Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz, California 950642

Received 5 September 2008/ Accepted 21 March 2009

Indole has been proposed to act as an extracellular signal molecule influencing biofilm formation in a range of bacteria. For this study, the role of indole in Vibrio cholerae biofilm formation was examined. It was shown that indole activates genes involved in vibrio polysaccharide (VPS) production, which is essential for V. cholerae biofilm formation. In addition to activating these genes, it was determined using microarrays that indole influences the expression of many other genes, including those involved in motility, protozoan grazing resistance, iron utilization, and ion transport. A transposon mutagenesis screen revealed additional components of the indole-VPS regulatory circuitry. The indole signaling cascade includes the DksA protein along with known regulators of VPS production, VpsR and CdgA. A working model is presented in which global control of gene expression by indole is coordinated through {sigma}54 and associated transcriptional regulators.

* Corresponding author. Mailing address: Marine Biology Research Division, 4305 Hubbs Hall, 8750 Biological Grade, Scripps Institution of Oceanography, University of California-San Diego, La Jolla, CA 92037. Phone: (858) 534-5233. Fax: (858) 534-7313. E-mail: dbartlett{at}ucsd.edu

{triangledown} Published ahead of print on 27 March 2009.

{dagger} Supplemental material for this article may be found at http://jb.asm.org/.

Journal of Bacteriology, June 2009, p. 3504-3516, Vol. 191, No. 11
0021-9193/09/$08.00+0     doi:10.1128/JB.01240-08
Copyright © 2009, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.





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