In nature beneficial bacteria provide waterproof coating over the roots of plants which stops other pathogenic microbes. A new study has found the mechanism by which communities of bacteria generate a waterproof coating.
Scientists focused on one bacterium called Bacillus subtilus. This bacterium is commonly found in the soil. The bacterium is quite hardy and it can form protective spores.
Once the bacterium reaches a plant root it forms a film through the alteration of its proteins. Here the proteins change shape and lock into a matrix, creating what is known as a biofilm. A biofilm is any group of microorganisms in which cells stick to each other on a surface. These adherent cells are frequently embedded within a self-produced matrix of extracellular polymeric substance (EPS). The resultant film can repel water, causing molecules to roll off. This means potential plant pathogens are also repelled.
The way that the bacterium changes shape is unusual and the response has not been noted to this degree before. The protein responds in such a co-ordinated way that it resembles jigsaw puzzle pieces slotting together.
The implications of the research are that mimicking this shield could be used to protect plants more widely from disease causing microbes. The researchers think it would be possible to develop a special bacterial coating to provide protection for plants.
The study was a collaborative effort from researchers based at the Universities of Edinburgh and Dundee. The findings have been published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. The paper is titled “Interfacial self-assembly of a bacterial hydrophobin.”
