Attachment of Vibrio alginolyticus to glass surfaces is dependent on swimming speed

The attachment of Vibrio alginolyticus to glass surfaces was investigated with special reference to the swimming speed due to the polar flagellum. This bacterium has two types of flagella, i.e., one polar flagellum and numerous lateral flagella. The mutant YM4, which possesses only the polar flagellum, showed much faster attachment than the mutant YM18, which does not possess flagella, indicating that the polar flagellum plays an important role. The attachment of YM4 was dependent on Na+ concentration and was specifically inhibited by amiloride, an inhibitor of polar flagellum rotation. These results are quite similar to those for swimming speed obtained under the same conditions. Observations with other mutants showed that chemotaxis is not critical and that the flagellum does not act as an appendage for attachment. From these results, it is concluded that the attachment of V. alginolyticus to glass surfaces is dependent on swimming speed.