Easter egg

Biofilms are the result of the multicellular lifestyle of B. subtilis. They are characterized by the formation of a matrix polysaccharide and an amyloid-like protein, TasA.

Parent categories	4. Life styles 4.2 Processes activated during stationary phase
Neighboring categories	4.2.1 Sporulation and germination 4.2.3 Coping with stress 4.2.4 Life styles -- miscellaneous
Related categories	no

Labs working on biofilm formation

• Daniel Kearns
• Oscar Kuipers
• Beth Lazazzera
• Richard Losick
• Nicola Stanley-Wall

Key genes and operons involved in biofilm formation

• matrix polysaccharide synthesis:
  • epsA-epsB-epsC-epsD-epsE-epsF-epsG-epsH-epsI-epsJ-epsK-epsL-epsM-epsN-epsO
• amyloid protein synthesis
  • yqxM-sipW-tasA
• regulation
  • SlrR
  • SlrA
  • SinR
  • SinI
  • PtkA
  • TkmA
  • PtpZ
  • DegU
  • RacX
• biofilm disassembly
  • YlmE
• other proteins required for biofilm formation
  • SpeA
  • YmcA
  • YxaB

Key reviews

• additional reviews: PubMed