(Elsevier, 2014) Solano Goñi, Cristina; Echeverz Sarasúa, Maite; Lasa Uzcudun, Íñigo; IdAB. Instituto de Agrobiotecnología / Agrobioteknologiako Institutua; Gobierno de Navarra / Nafarroako Gobernua: IIM13329.RI1
Biofilm development and quorum sensing are closely interconnected processes. Biofilm
formation is a cooperative group behaviour that involves bacterial populations living
embedded in a self produced extracellular matrix. Quorum sensing (QS) is a cell-cell
communication mechanism that synchronizes gene expression in response to population
cell density. Intuitively, it would appear that QS might coordinate the switch to a
biofilm lifestyle when the population density reaches a threshold level. However,
compelling evidence obtained in different bacterial species coincides in that activation
of QS occurs in the formed biofilm and activates the maturation and disassembly of the
biofilm in a coordinate manner. The aim of this review is to illustrate, using four
bacterial pathogens as examples, the emergent concept that QS activates the biofilm
dispersion process.
