title: Molecular genetics of bacterial attachment and biofouling.
abstract: Microbial adhesion to animate or inert surfaces is potentially mediated by nonspecific physical or specific ligand-receptor interactions. Growth and survival of the microbial community or biofilm then depends on adaptation to a series of changing environmental milieux. Within the realm of cell-cell interaction, recent advances suggest that flagella, fimbriae and other protein receptors are essential for bacterial attachment to surfaces. There has also been profound progress in the elucidation of genes and molecules necessary for bacterial attachments to surfaces and subsequent biofilm formation.
authors.affiliation: School of Microbiology and Immunology, University of New South Wales Sydney, Australia. H.Dalton@unsw.edu.au
authors.forename: H M
authors.initials: HM
authors.lastname: Dalton
authors.forename: P E
authors.initials: PE
authors.lastname: March
mesh_terms: D001422:Bacterial Adhesion / Q000235:genetics*; D018407:Bacterial Physiological Phenomena; D001426:Bacterial Proteins / Q000502:physiology; D018441:Biofilms; D002473:Cell Wall / Q000502:physiology; D004787:Environmental Pollution; D010861:Fimbriae, Bacterial / Q000502:physiology; D005407:Flagella / Q000502:physiology; D015964:Gene Expression Regulation, Bacterial
chemical_list: D001426:Bacterial Proteins