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Journal of Bacteriology, February 2009, p. 1248-1257, Vol. 191, No. 4
0021-9193/09/$08.00+0     doi:10.1128/JB.01086-08
Copyright © 2009, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.

IscR Controls Iron-Dependent Biofilm Formation in Escherichia coli by Regulating Type I Fimbria Expression{triangledown} ,{dagger}

Yun Wu and F. Wayne Outten*

Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of South Carolina, Columbia, South Carolina 29208

Received 5 August 2008/ Accepted 1 December 2008

Biofilm formation is a complex developmental process regulated by multiple environmental signals. In addition to other nutrients, the transition metal iron can also regulate biofilm formation. Iron-dependent regulation of biofilm formation varies by bacterial species, and the exact regulatory pathways that control iron-dependent biofilm formation are often unknown or only partially characterized. To address this gap in our knowledge, we examined the role of iron availability in regulating biofilm formation in Escherichia coli. The results indicate that biofilm formation is repressed under low-iron conditions in E. coli. Furthermore, a key iron regulator, IscR, controls biofilm formation in response to changes in cellular Fe-S homeostasis. IscR regulates the FimE recombinase to control expression of type I fimbriae in E. coli. We propose that iron-dependent regulation of FimE via IscR leads to decreased surface attachment and biofilm dispersal under iron-limiting conditions.

* Corresponding author. Mailing address: Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of South Carolina, 631 Sumter Street, Columbia, SC 29208. Phone: (803) 777-8151. Fax: (803) 777-9521. E-mail: wayne.outten{at}chem.sc.edu

{triangledown} Published ahead of print on 12 December 2008.

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

Journal of Bacteriology, February 2009, p. 1248-1257, Vol. 191, No. 4
0021-9193/09/$08.00+0     doi:10.1128/JB.01086-08
Copyright © 2009, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.





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