Two-Component Signal Transduction Systems: A Major Strategy for Connecting Input Stimuli to Biofilm Formation

Biofilms are multicellular communities of microbes that are encased within an extracellular matrix. Environmental factors induce bacteria to form biofilm. Bacteria have several regulatory mechanisms in response to environmental changes, and the two-component signal transduction system (TCS) is a maj...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Cong Liu, Di Sun, Jingrong Zhu, Weijie Liu
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Frontiers Media S.A. 2019-01-01
Series:Frontiers in Microbiology
Subjects:
Online Access:https://www.frontiersin.org/article/10.3389/fmicb.2018.03279/full
Description
Summary:Biofilms are multicellular communities of microbes that are encased within an extracellular matrix. Environmental factors induce bacteria to form biofilm. Bacteria have several regulatory mechanisms in response to environmental changes, and the two-component signal transduction system (TCS) is a major strategy in connecting changes in input signals to changes in cellular physiological output. The TCS employs multiple mechanisms such as cross-regulation, to integrate and coordinate various input stimuli to control biofilm formation. In this mini-review, we demonstrate the roles of TCS on biofilm formation, illustrating these input signals and modulation modes, which may be utilized by future investigations in elucidating the regulatory signals and underlying the mechanisms of biofilm formation.
ISSN:1664-302X