Adhesion of Shewanella oneidensis MR-1 to iron (Oxy)(Hydr)oxides: microcolony formation and isotherm

Oxygen-selective regulation of cyclic di-GMP synthesis by a globin coupled sensor with a shortened linking domain modulates Shewanella sp. ANA-3 biofilm

Bacteria utilize heme proteins, such as globin coupled sensors (GCSs), to sense and respond to oxygen levels. GCSs are predicted in almost 2000 bacterial species and consist of a globin domain linked by a central domain to a variety of output domains, including diguanylate cyclase domains that synthesize c-di-GMP, a major regulator of biofilm formation. To investigate the effects of middle domain length and heme edge residues on GCS diguanylate cyclase activity and cellular function, a putative diguanylate cyclase-containing GCS from Shewanella sp. ANA-3 (SA3GCS) was characterized. Binding of O2 to the heme resulted in activation of diguanylate cyclase activity, while NO and CO binding had minimal effects on catalysis, demonstrating that SA3GCS exhibits greater ligand selectivity for cyclase activation than many other diguanylate cyclase-containing GCSs. Small angle X-ray scattering analysis of dimeric SA3GCS identified movement of the cyclase domains away from each other, while maintaining the globin dimer interface, as a potential mechanism for regulating cyclase activity. Comparison of the Shewanella ANA-3 wild type and SA3GCS deletion (ΔSA3GCS) strains identified changes in biofilm formation, demonstrating that SA3GCS diguanylate cyclase activity modulates Shewanella phenotypes.

Extracellular electron transfer influences the transport and retention of ferrihydrite nanoparticles in quartz sand coated with Shewanella oneidensis biofilm

Microbial biofilm has been found to impact the mobility of nanoparticles in saturated porous media by altering physicochemical properties of collector surface. However, little is known about the influence of biofilm's biological activity on nanoparticle transport and retention. Here, the transport of ferrihydrite nanoparticles (FhNPs) was studied in quartz sands coated with biofilm of Shewanella oneidensis MR-1 that is capable of reducing Fe(III) through extracellular electron transfer (EET). It was found that MR-1 biofilm coating enhanced FhNPs' deposition under different pH/ionic strength conditions and humic acid concentrations. More importantly, when the influent electron donor (glucose) concentration was increased to promote biofilm's EET activity, the breakthrough of FhNPs in biofilm-coated sands was inhibited. A lack of continuous and stable supply of electron donor, on the contrary, led to remobilization and release of the originally retained FhNPs. Column experiments with biofilm of EET-deficient MR-1 mutants (ΔomcA/ΔmtrC and ΔcymA) further indicated that the impairment of EET activity decreased the retention of FhNPs. It is proposed that the effective surface binding and adhesion of FhNPs that is required by direct EET cannot be neglected when evaluating the transport of FhNPs in sands coated with electroactive biofilm.

Reduction of alternative electron acceptors drives biofilm formation in Shewanella algae

Shewanella spp. possess a broad respiratory versatility, which contributes to the occupation of hypoxic and anoxic environmental or host-associated niches. Here, we observe a strain-specific induction of biofilm formation in response to supplementation with the anaerobic electron acceptors dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO) and nitrate in a panel of Shewanella algae isolates. The respiration-driven biofilm response is not observed in DMSO and nitrate reductase deletion mutants of the type strain S. algae CECT 5071, and can be restored upon complementation with the corresponding reductase operon(s) but not by an operon containing a catalytically inactive nitrate reductase. The distinct transcriptional changes, proportional to the effect of these compounds on biofilm formation, include cyclic di-GMP (c-di-GMP) turnover genes. In support, ectopic expression of the c-di-GMP phosphodiesterase YhjH of Salmonella Typhimurium but not its catalytically inactive variant decreased biofilm formation. The respiration-dependent biofilm response of S. algae may permit differential colonization of environmental or host niches.

Removing Escherichia coli from water using zinc oxide-coated zeolite

The removal of Escherichia coli (E. coli) from water by zinc oxide-coated zeolite (ZOCZ) and ZOCZ's antibacterial properties were examined in laboratory experiments using plate counting method and tests of cell apoptosis. Batch experiments showed that ZOCZ has a maximum removal capacity for E. coli of about 4.34 × 10⁶ CFU g^-1 at 25 °C. Element mappings confirm that zinc ions accumulate in the E. coli cells causing cell death. Pseudo-second-order kinetics and Freundlich isotherms were found to best describe the removal of E. coli, suggesting that a multilayer of E. coli cells forms on the surface of ZOCZ particles.

In situ nuclear magnetic resonance microimaging of live biofilms in a microchannel

The firstin situnuclear magnetic resonance microimaging of live biofilms in a transferrable microfluidic platform.

Adhesion of Shewanella oneidensis MR-1 to Goethite: A Two-Dimensional Correlation Spectroscopic Study

Bacterial adhesion to mineral surfaces is an important but underappreciated process. To decipher the molecular level process and mechanism, the adhesion of Shewanella oneidensis MR-1 cells to goethite was investigated using flow-cell attenuated total reflectance (ATR) Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy coupled with two-dimensional correlation spectroscopy (2D-COS) analysis. The FTIR results indicate that bacterial phosphate-moieties play an important role in the formation of mono- and bidentate inner-sphere complexes, whereas carboxylic groups on cell surface only have a minor contribution to its adhesion. The 2D-COS analysis in short-term (0-120 min) and long-term (2-18 h) stages reveal that the adhesion process was in the following sequence: change in H-bonds of proteins on cell surfaces > formation of monodentate inner-sphere surface complexes > formation of outer-sphere surface complexes > transformation of protein secondary structure on cell surfaces > formation of additional bridging bidentate surface complexes. In addition, the adhesion of MR-1 cells on goethite was pH dependent due to pH impacts on the cell structure and the interface charge. The in situ ATR-FTIR integrated with 2D-COS analysis highlights its great potential in exploring complex surface reactions with microbes involved. These results improve our understanding of microbe-mineral interactions at the molecular level and have significant implications for a series of biogeochemical processes.

The marine bacteria Shewanella frigidimarina NCIMB400 upregulates the type VI secretion system during early biofilm formation

Shewanella sp. are facultative anaerobic Gram-negative bacteria, extensively studied for their electron transfer ability. Shewanella frigidimarina has been detected and isolated from marine environments, and in particular, from biofilms. However, its ability to adhere to surfaces and form a biofilm is poorly understood. In this study, we show that the ability to adhere and to form a biofilm of S. frigidimarina NCIMB400 is significantly higher than that of Shewanella oneidensis in our conditions. We also show that this strain forms a biofilm in artificial seawater, whereas in Luria-Bertani, this capacity is reduced. To identify proteins involved in early biofilm formation, a proteomic analysis of sessile versus planktonic membrane-enriched fractions allowed the identification of several components of the same type VI secretion system gene cluster: putative Hcp1 and ImpB proteins as well as a forkhead-associated domain-containing protein. The upregulation of Hcp1 a marker of active translocation has been confirmed using quantitative reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction. Our data demonstrated the presence of a single and complete type VI secretion system in S. frigidimarina NCIMB400 genome, upregulated in sessile compared with planktonic conditions. The fact that three proteins including the secreted protein Hcp1 have been identified may suggest that this type VI secretion system is functional.

Oxygen promotes biofilm formation of Shewanella putrefaciens CN32 through a diguanylate cyclase and an adhesin

Although oxygen has been reported to regulate biofilm formation by several Shewanella species, the exact regulatory mechanism mostly remains unclear. Here, we identify a direct oxygen-sensing diguanylate cyclase (DosD) and reveal its regulatory role in biofilm formation by Shewanella putrefaciens CN32 under aerobic conditions. In vitro and in vivo analyses revealed that the activity of DosD culminates to synthesis of cyclic diguanylate (c-di-GMP) in the presence of oxygen. DosD regulates the transcription of bpfA operon which encodes seven proteins including a large repetitive adhesin BpfA and its cognate type I secretion system (TISS). Regulation of DosD in aerobic biofilms is heavily dependent on an adhesin BpfA and the TISS. This study offers an insight into the molecular mechanism of oxygen-stimulated biofilm formation by S. putrefaciens CN32.

ATR-FTIR spectroscopy study of the influence of pH and contact time on the adhesion of Shewanella putrefaciens bacterial cells to the surface of hematite

Attachment of live cells of Shewanella putrefaciens strain CN-32 to the surface of hematite (α-Fe(2)O(3)) was studied with in situ ATR-FTIR spectroscopy at variable pH (4.5-7.7) and contact times up to 24 h. The IR spectra indicate that phosphate based functional groups on the cell wall play an important role in mediating adhesion through formation of inner-sphere coordinative bonds to hematite surface sites. The inner-sphere attachment mode of microbial P groups varies with pH, involving either a change in protonation or in coordination to hematite surface sites as pH is modified. At all pH values, spectra collected during the early stages of adhesion show intense IR bands associated with reactive P-groups, suggestive of preferential coordination of P-moieties at the hematite surface. Spectra collected after longer sorption times show distinct frequencies from cell wall protein and carboxyl groups, indicating that bacterial adhesion occurring over longer time scales is to a lesser degree associated with preferential attachment of P-based bacterial functional groups to the hematite surface. The results of this study demonstrate that pH and reaction time influence cell-mineral interactions, implying that these parameters play an important role in determining cell mobility and biofilm formation in aqueous geochemical environments.

Phage-induced lysis enhances biofilm formation in Shewanella oneidensis MR-1

Shewanella oneidensis MR-1 is capable of forming highly structured surface-attached communities. By DNase I treatment, we demonstrated that extracellular DNA (eDNA) serves as a structural component in all stages of biofilm formation under static and hydrodynamic conditions. We determined whether eDNA is released through cell lysis mediated by the three prophages LambdaSo, MuSo1 and MuSo2 that are harbored in the genome of S. oneidensis MR-1. Mutant analyses and infection studies revealed that all three prophages may individually lead to cell lysis. However, only LambdaSo and MuSo2 form infectious phage particles. Phage release and cell lysis already occur during early stages of static incubation. A mutant devoid of the prophages was significantly less prone to lysis in pure culture. In addition, the phage-less mutant was severely impaired in biofilm formation through all stages of development, and three-dimensional growth occurred independently of eDNA as a structural component. Thus, we suggest that in S. oneidensis MR-1 prophage-mediated lysis results in the release of crucial biofilm-promoting factors, in particular eDNA.