title: PotD protein stimulates biofilm formation by Escherichia coli.
abstract: In natural environments bacteria often adopt a biofilm-growth mode. PotD is a spermidine/putrescine-binding periplasmic protein belonging to polyamine transport system and we have examined its role during biofilm formation and for planktonic growth in Escherichia coli BL21(DE3) strains that either over-express PotD (PotD+), or under-express it (PotDi) and also in a control strain with vector pET26b(+) (PotD0). The three strains displayed similar growth in planktonic growth-mode, but over expression of PotD protein greatly stimulated the formation of biofilms, while less biofilm formed by strain PotDi in comparison to strain PotD0. The expressions of five genes, recA, sfiA, groEL, groES, and gyrA, were increasingly expressed in PotD+ biofilm cells. Thus, PotD is likely to change the rate of polyamine synthesis, which stimulates the expression of SOS genes and biofilm formation.
authors.affiliation: State Key Laboratory of Microbial Technology, Shandong University, Jinan, Shandong, People's Republic of China. zhangxiao3221863@163.com
authors.forename: Xiao
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.forename: Yuzhen
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.forename: Junjun
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.forename: Honglei
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Liu
mesh_terms: D018441:Biofilms / Q000254:growth & development*; D004926:Escherichia coli / Q000235:genetics / Q000502:physiology*; D029968:Escherichia coli Proteins / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D015870:Gene Expression; D026901:Membrane Transport Proteins / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D033902:Periplasmic Binding Proteins / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*
chemical_list: D029968:Escherichia coli Proteins; D026901:Membrane Transport Proteins; D033902:Periplasmic Binding Proteins; C099274:PotD protein, E coli