Mini-review: quorum sensing in the marine environment and its relationship to biofouling

Abstract

Bacterial quorum sensing (QS) is a cell–cell communication and gene regulatory mechanism that allows bacteria to coordinate swarming, biofilm formation, stress resistance, and production of toxins and secondary metabolites in response to threshold concentrations of QS signals that accumulate within a diffusion-limited environment. This review focuses on the role of QS signaling and QS inhibition in marine bacteria by compounds derived from marine organisms. Since the formation of a biofilm is considered to be an initial step in the development of fouling, direct and indirect effects of QS signals and inhibitors on the process of marine biofouling are discussed. Directions for future investigations and QS-related biotechnological applications are highlighted.

Keywords:

• quorum sensing
• inhibitors
• biofouling
• biofilm formation
• marine environment
• Gram-negative bacteria

Acknowledgements

The work of Sergey Dobretsov was supported by the George E. Burch Fellowship in Theoretical Medicine and Affiliated Sciences at the Smithsonian Institution (USA) and the SQU grant IG/AGR/FISH/09/03. Max Teplitski's contribution was supported by the Florida Sea Grant no. NA060AR4170014 R/LR-MB-27 under CRIS project FLA-SWS-04591. Valerie Paul acknowledges funding by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's ECOHAB program (the Ecology and Oceanography of Harmful Algal Blooms) Project NA05NOS4781194 and the Florida Sea Grant College Program with support from NOAA, Office of Sea Grant, US Department of Commerce, Grant no. NA06OAR4170014. This is SMSFP contribution no. 773.