Adhesion of single bacterial cells in the micronewton range
- 11 April 2006
- journal article
- Published by Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences
- Vol. 103 (15) , 5764-5768
- https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.0601705103
Abstract
The adhesion of bacteria to surfaces plays critical roles in the environment, disease, and industry. In aquatic environments, Caulobacter crescentus is one of the first colonizers of submerged surfaces. Using a micromanipulation technique, we measured the adhesion force of single C. crescentus cells attached to borosilicate substrates through their adhesive holdfast. The detachment forces measured for 14 cells ranged over 0.11 to 2.26 microN, averaging 0.59 +/- 0.62 microN. Based on the calculation of stress distribution with the finite element analysis method (dividing an object into small grids and calculating relevant parameters for all of the elements), the adhesion strength between the holdfast and the substrate is >68 N/mm(2) in the central region of contact. To our knowledge, this strength of adhesion is the strongest ever measured for biological adhesives.Keywords
This publication has 35 references indexed in Scilit:
- Extracellular Carbohydrate-Containing Polymers of a Model Biofilm-Producing Strain, Staphylococcus epidermidis RP62AInfection and Immunity, 2005
- The Elastic Properties of the Caulobacter crescentus Adhesive Holdfast Are Dependent on Oligomers of N -AcetylglucosamineJournal of Bacteriology, 2005
- Development of Surface Adhesion inCaulobacter crescentusJournal of Bacteriology, 2004
- Polysaccharide properties probed with atomic force microscopyJournal of Microscopy, 2003
- Identification of Genes Required for Synthesis of the Adhesive Holdfast in Caulobacter crescentusJournal of Bacteriology, 2003
- The measurement of Bacillus mycoides spore adhesion using atomic force microscopy, simple counting methods, and a spinning disk techniqueBiotechnology & Bioengineering, 2002
- Elastomeric gradients: a hedge against stress concentration in marine holdfasts?Philosophical Transactions Of The Royal Society B-Biological Sciences, 2002
- Probing Bacterial Electrosteric Interactions Using Atomic Force MicroscopyEnvironmental Science & Technology, 2000
- Direct measurement of the force of adhesion of a single biological cell using an atomic force microscopeColloids and Surfaces A: Physicochemical and Engineering Aspects, 1998
- Force measurements by micromanipulation of a single actin filament by glass needlesNature, 1988