Abstract
Attachment of microorganisms to surfaces is a prerequisite for colonization and biofilm formation. The hyperthermophilic crenarchaeote Sulfolobus solfataricus was able to attach to a variety of surfaces, such as glass, mica, pyrite, and carbon-coated gold grids. Deletion mutant analysis showed that for initial attachment the presence of flagella and pili is essential. Attached cells produced extracellular polysaccharides containing mannose, galactose, and N-acetylglucosamine. Genes possibly involved in the production of the extracellular polysaccharides were identified.
Publication types
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Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't
MeSH terms
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Acetylglucosamine / chemistry
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Archaeal Proteins / genetics
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Archaeal Proteins / physiology
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Flagella / metabolism*
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Flagella / ultrastructure
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Galactose / chemistry
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Gene Expression Regulation, Archaeal / genetics
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Gene Expression Regulation, Archaeal / physiology
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Mannose / chemistry
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Microscopy, Electron, Scanning
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Microscopy, Fluorescence
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Polysaccharides / chemistry
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Polysaccharides / metabolism
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Reverse Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction
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Sulfolobus solfataricus / genetics
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Sulfolobus solfataricus / metabolism*
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Sulfolobus solfataricus / ultrastructure
Substances
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Archaeal Proteins
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Polysaccharides
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Mannose
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Acetylglucosamine
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Galactose