Escherichia coli self-organizes developmental rosettes.

Area of Science:

• Microbiology
• Evolutionary Biology
• Synthetic Biology

Background:

• Rosettes are self-organizing multicellular communities vital for development in eukaryotes.
• This multicellular behavior has not been previously observed in bacteria.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate if Escherichia coli forms rosettes through active sister-cell repositioning.
• To understand the mechanisms and implications of rosette formation in bacteria.

Main Methods:

• Observed Escherichia coli cell division and behavior.
• Analyzed cell folding patterns using angular random walk models.
• Investigated the role of flagella and Ag43 adhesion in rosette formation.
• Assessed the requirement of rosette formation for subsequent multicellular development.

Main Results:

• Escherichia coli forms rosettes via active sister-cell repositioning, creating a characteristic quatrefoil configuration.
• Flagellar synthesis is essential for rosette formation, balancing adhesion and motility.
• Proper rosette formation is required for multicellular chain morphogenesis, rpoS gene expression, and biofilm development.
• Rosette-like communities were observed in standard motility assays, suggesting a response to hydrostatic environments.

Conclusions:

• Escherichia coli exhibits self-organization of clonal rosettes, a novel prokaryotic multicellular behavior.
• This finding has significant implications for understanding the evolution of multicellularity, synthetic biology applications, and medical microbiology.
• Rosette formation may be a general response to hydrostatic conditions in E. coli.