Marine sponges harbour abundant and diverse bacterial communities, providing an ideal environment for bacterial cell-density-dependent cell-cell signalling, termed quorum sensing. The marine sponge symbiont Ruegeria sp. KLH11 produces mainly long chain acylhomoserine lactones (AHLs) and has been developed as a quorum sensing model for roseobacterial sponge symbionts. Two pairs of luxR/I homologues were identified by genetic screening and were designated ssaRI and ssbRI (sponge-associated symbiont locus A or B, luxR/luxI homologue). In this study, we identified a third luxI-type gene, named sscI. The sscI gene does not have a cognate luxR homologue present at an adjacent locus and thus sscI is an AHL synthase solo. The sscI gene is required for production of long-chain hydroxylated AHLs, contributes to AHL pools and modestly influences flagellar motility in KLH11. A triple mutant for all luxI-type genes cannot produce AHLs, but still synthesizes para-coumaroyl-homoserine lactone.
© 2015 The Authors.