Faculty Collaboration Database

Multicellular development in Myxococcus xanthus is stimulated by predator-prey interactions. J Bacteriol 2007 Aug;189(15):5675-82

Date

05/22/2007

Pubmed ID

17513469

Pubmed Central ID

PMC1951827

DOI

10.1128/JB.00544-07

Scopus ID

2-s2.0-34547645982   41 Citations

Abstract

Myxococcus xanthus is a predatory bacterium that exhibits complex social behavior. The most pronounced behavior is the aggregation of cells into raised fruiting body structures in which cells differentiate into stress-resistant spores. In the laboratory, monocultures of M. xanthus at a very high density will reproducibly induce hundreds of randomly localized fruiting bodies when exposed to low nutrient availability and a solid surface. In this report, we analyze how M. xanthus fruiting body development proceeds in a coculture with suitable prey. Our analysis indicates that when prey bacteria are provided as a nutrient source, fruiting body aggregation is more organized, such that fruiting bodies form specifically after a step-down or loss of prey availability, whereas a step-up in prey availability inhibits fruiting body formation. This localization of aggregates occurs independently of the basal nutrient levels tested, indicating that starvation is not required for this process. Analysis of early developmental signaling relA and asgD mutants indicates that they are capable of forming fruiting body aggregates in the presence of prey, demonstrating that the stringent response and A-signal production are surprisingly not required for the initiation of fruiting behavior. However, these strains are still defective in differentiating to spores. We conclude that fruiting body formation does not occur exclusively in response to starvation and propose an alternative model in which multicellular development is driven by the interactions between M. xanthus cells and their cognate prey.

Author List

Berleman JE, Kirby JR

Author

John Kirby PhD Chair, Center Associate Director, Professor in the Microbiology and Immunology department at Medical College of Wisconsin

MESH terms used to index this publication - Major topics in bold

Bacterial Proteins
Coculture Techniques
Escherichia coli
Ligases
Morphogenesis
Mutation
Myxococcus xanthus
Spores, Bacterial