Is Pseudomonas aeruginosa only "sensing quorum"?
The so-called quorum sensing (QS) response is a bacterial genetic reply to a chemical signal, called autoinducer, produced by the same cells. In this way bacteria modulate the transcription of genes important for their survival at high densities. In this paper we review the different elements involved in P. aeruginosa QS response, showing that it is a genetic regulatory network that not only responds to high bacterial densities, but to other environmental signals as well. We propose that QS in P. aeruginosa constitutes a novel genetic regulon that integrates and responds to nutritional factors and stress conditions in addition to bacterial density.
Soberón-Chávez
Gloria
G
Departamento de Biología Molecular y Biotecnología, Instituto de Investigaciones Biomédicas, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, México D. F. gloria@biomedicas.unam.mx
Aguirre-Ramírez
Marisela
M
Ordóñez
Leandro
L
D018441:Biofilms; D004777:Environment; D015964:Gene Expression Regulation, Bacterial / Q000502:physiology*; D011550:Pseudomonas aeruginosa / Q000235:genetics / Q000502:physiology*; D015398:Signal Transduction; D014158:Transcription, Genetic / Q000502:physiology