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Is the periplasm continuous in filamentous multicellular cyanobacteria?
Enrique Flores1, Antonia Herrero, C Peter Wolk
1Instituto de Bioquímica Vegetal y Fotosíntesis, C.S.I.C.-Universidad de Sevilla, Américo Vespucio 49, E-41092 Seville, Spain. eflores@ibvf.csic.es
Trends in Microbiology
|August 29, 2006
Summary
Multicellular cyanobacteria may use a continuous periplasmic space as a communication channel. This structure facilitates nutrient and molecule exchange essential for their collective function.
Area of Science:
- Microbiology
- Cell Biology
- Biochemistry
Background:
- Filamentous, heterocyst-forming cyanobacteria exhibit multicellular behavior with intercellular exchange of nutrients and regulatory molecules.
- The precise mechanisms governing this intercellular exchange in cyanobacteria remain largely unknown.
- Cyanobacteria possess a Gram-negative cell wall, including a peptidoglycan layer and an outer membrane external to the cytoplasmic membrane.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the structural basis for intercellular communication in filamentous cyanobacteria.
- To propose a novel mechanism for nutrient and molecule transfer between cells in these organisms.
Main Methods:
- Classical electron microscopy was employed to examine the cell wall structure of filamentous cyanobacteria.
- Analysis focused on the continuity of the outer membrane and the periplasmic space along the filament.
Main Results:
- Electron microscopy revealed a continuous outer membrane along the filament of cyanobacterial cells.
- This structural observation suggests a potentially continuous periplasmic space between the cytoplasmic and outer membranes.
Conclusions:
- A continuous periplasmic space is proposed as a communication conduit in filamentous cyanobacteria.
- This conduit is hypothesized to be crucial for the transfer of compounds essential for multicellular function.
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