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Biofilm formation by hyperpiliated mutants of Pseudomonas aeruginosa
1Centre for Infection and Biomaterials Research, Hospital for Sick Children, and Department of Surgery, University of Toronto, Toronto, Canada.
Journal of Bacteriology
|March 20, 2003
Abstract:
Under static growth conditions, hyperpiliated, nontwitching pilT and pilU mutants of Pseudomonas aeruginosa formed dense biofilms, showing that adhesion, not twitching motility, is necessary for biofilm initiation. Under flow conditions, the pilT mutant formed mushroom-like structures larger than those of the wild type but the pilU mutant was defective in biofilm formation. Therefore, twitching motility affects the development of biofilm structure, possibly through modulation of detachment.