Description: Over the last 10–15 years, the study of how bacteria sense their environment and
respond accordingly has emerged as a focal point in the field of microbiology. Not
surprisingly, the bacterial adaptive response is now described by a panoply of interesting
mechanisms, signals, behaviors, etc., involving everything from the movement
of flagella to the formation social groupings. Bacterial Sensing and Signaling, a volume
of the Karger book series Contributions to Microbiology, was initiated with the hope of
introducing the results of state-of-the-art research from internationally recognized
experts.
Chemical communication is undoubtedly the best-studied mechanism for passing
information between bacterial organisms and coordinating their behavior. As such,
Duan et al. begin the first section of this book with an introduction to the distinct
array of chemical signals that shape bacterial community relationships. Michael
Federle then follows with a description of his work on one such signal, termed autoinducer-
2, with a focus on its role in cell-cell communication (or quorum sensing)
among different bacterial species and the mechanism by which such a signal is transduced
across the bacterial membrane.
In keeping with the theme of signal transduction, Rao and Ordal next present a
comprehensive review of the molecular mechanisms by which individual bacteria
sense environmental attractants and repellents and transduce this information to the
flagellar motor to evoke a locomotive response (chemotaxis). Chemotaxis is the most
thoroughly understood bacterial adaptive behavior, and its description serves to
introduce the roles of bacterial two-component and phosphotransferase systems
(PTSs) systems in signal transmission and the processes of receptor multimerization
and methylation that allow response adaptation. The importance of PTSs in the coupling
of sensory and regulatory mechanisms is further pursued by Lengeler and
Jahreis, who describe both the rapid chemotactic responses to carbohydrates and the
delayed responses associated with catabolite repression, as well as the concepts adaptation,
memory, and learning associated with these signaling systems.

 

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