Identification of Genes Involved in Swarming Motility Using aPseudomonas aeruginosaPAO1 Mini-Tn5-luxMutant Library

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Abstract
During a screening of a mini-Tn5-luxCDABEtransposon mutant library ofPseudomonas aeruginosaPAO1 for alterations in swarming motility, 36 mutants were identified with Tn5insertions in genes for the synthesis or function of flagellin and type IV pilus, in genes for the Xcp-related type II secretion system, and in regulatory, metabolic, chemosensory, and hypothetical genes with unknown functions. These mutants were differentially affected in swimming and twitching motility but in most cases had only a minor additional motility defect. Our data provide evidence that swarming is a more complex type of motility, since it is influenced by a large number of different genes inP. aeruginosa. Conversely, many of the swarming-negative mutants also showed an impairment in biofilm formation, indicating a strong relationship between these types of growth states.
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