Flagellar Stators Stimulate c-di-GMP Production by Pseudomonas aeruginosa.

Flagellar motility is critical for surface attachment and biofilm formation in many bacteria. A key regulator of flagellar motility in and other microbes is cyclic diguanylate (c-di-GMP). High levels of this second messenger repress motility and stimulate biofilm formation.

DNA Data Visualization (DDV): Software for Generating Web-Based Interfaces Supporting Navigation and Analysis of DNA Sequence Data of Entire Genomes.

Data visualization methods are necessary during the exploration and analysis activities of an increasingly data-intensive scientific process. There are few existing visualization methods for raw nucleotide sequences of a whole genome or chromosome. Software for data visualization should allow the researchers to create accessible data visualization interfaces that can be exported and shared with others on the web.

Regulation of Type IV Pili Contributes to Surface Behaviors of Historical and Epidemic Strains of Clostridium difficile.

Unlabelled: The intestinal pathogen Clostridium difficile is an urgent public health threat that causes antibiotic-associated diarrhea and is a leading cause of fatal nosocomial infections in the United States. C. difficile rates of recurrence and mortality have increased in recent years due to the emergence of so-called "hypervirulent" epidemic strains.

Cyclic-di-GMP signaling in the Gram-positive pathogen Clostridium difficile.

The anaerobic Gram-positive bacterium Clostridium difficile causes intestinal infections responsible for symptoms ranging from mild diarrhea to fulminant colitis. Like other bacteria, C. difficile needs to sense and integrate environmental signals in order to adapt to changes and thrive in its environment.

Cyclic di-GMP riboswitch-regulated type IV pili contribute to aggregation of Clostridium difficile.

Clostridium difficile is an anaerobic Gram-positive bacterium that causes intestinal infections with symptoms ranging from mild diarrhea to fulminant colitis. Cyclic diguanosine monophosphate (c-di-GMP) is a bacterial second messenger that typically regulates the switch from motile, free-living to sessile and multicellular behaviors in Gram-negative bacteria. Increased intracellular c-di-GMP concentration in C.

Diversity of integrating conjugative elements in actinobacteria: Coexistence of two mechanistically different DNA-translocation systems.

Conjugation is certainly the most widespread and promiscuous mechanism of horizontal gene transfer in bacteria. During conjugation, DNA translocation across membranes of two cells forming a mating pair is mediated by two types of mobile genetic elements: conjugative plasmids and integrating conjugative elements (ICEs). The vast majority of conjugative plasmids and ICEs employ a sophisticated protein secretion apparatus called type IV secretion system to transfer to a recipient cell.

Uncovering the prevalence and diversity of integrating conjugative elements in actinobacteria.

Horizontal gene transfer greatly facilitates rapid genetic adaptation of bacteria to shifts in environmental conditions and colonization of new niches by allowing one-step acquisition of novel functions. Conjugation is a major mechanism of horizontal gene transfer mediated by conjugative plasmids and integrating conjugative elements (ICEs). While in most bacterial conjugative systems DNA translocation requires the assembly of a complex type IV secretion system (T4SS), in Actinobacteria a single DNA FtsK/SpoIIIE-like translocation protein is required.

c-di-GMP turn-over in Clostridium difficile is controlled by a plethora of diguanylate cyclases and phosphodiesterases.

Clostridium difficile infections have become a major healthcare concern in the last decade during which the emergence of new strains has underscored this bacterium's capacity to cause persistent epidemics. c-di-GMP is a bacterial second messenger regulating diverse bacterial phenotypes, notably motility and biofilm formation, in proteobacteria such as Vibrio cholerae, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, and Salmonella. c-di-GMP is synthesized by diguanylate cyclases (DGCs) that contain a conserved GGDEF domain.

Beyond antibiotic resistance: integrating conjugative elements of the SXT/R391 family that encode novel diguanylate cyclases participate to c-di-GMP signalling in Vibrio cholerae.

In Vibrio cholerae, the second messenger bis-(3'-5')-cyclic dimeric guanosine monophosphate (c-di-GMP) increases exopolysaccharides production and biofilm formation and decreases virulence and motility. As such, c-di-GMP is considered an important player in the transition from the host to persistence in the environment. c-di-GMP level is regulated through a complex network of more than 60 chromosomal genes encoding predicted diguanylate cyclases (DGCs) and phosphodiesterases.