This Article
Right arrow Full Text
Right arrow Full Text (PDF)
Right arrow Alert me when this article is cited
Right arrow Alert me if a correction is posted
Services
Right arrow Similar articles in this journal
Right arrow Similar articles in PubMed
Right arrow Alert me to new issues of the journal
Right arrow Download to citation manager
Right arrowReprints and Permissions
Right arrow Copyright Information
Right arrow Books from ASM Press
Right arrow MicrobeWorld
Citing Articles
Right arrow Citing Articles via HighWire
Right arrow Citing Articles via Google Scholar
Google Scholar
Right arrow Articles by Hunter, R. C.
Right arrow Articles by Beveridge, T. J.
Right arrow Search for Related Content
PubMed
Right arrow PubMed Citation
Right arrow Articles by Hunter, R. C.
Right arrow Articles by Beveridge, T. J.

 Previous Article  |  Next Article 

Journal of Bacteriology, November 2005, p. 7619-7630, Vol. 187, No. 22
0021-9193/05/$08.00+0     doi:10.1128/JB.187.22.7619-7630.2005
Copyright © 2005, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.

High-Resolution Visualization of Pseudomonas aeruginosa PAO1 Biofilms by Freeze-Substitution Transmission Electron Microscopy

Ryan C. Hunter* and Terry J. Beveridge

Department of Molecular & Cellular Biology and AFMnet-NCE, College of Biological Science, University of Guelph, Guelph, Ontario N1G 2W1, Canada

Received 13 July 2005/ Accepted 28 August 2005

High-pressure freeze-substitution and transmission electron microscopy have been used for high-resolution imaging of the natural structure of a gram-negative biofilm. Unlike more conventional embedding techniques, this method confirms many of the observations seen by confocal microscopy but with finer structural detail. It further reveals that there is a structural complexity to biofilms at both the cellular and extracellular matrix levels that has not been seen before. Different domains of healthy and lysed cells exist randomly dispersed within a single biofilm as well as different structural organizations of exopolymers. Particulate matter is suspended within this network of fibers and appears to be an integral part of the exopolymeric substance (EPS). O-side chains extending from the outer membrane are integrated into EPS polymers so as to form a continuum. Together, the results support the concept of physical microenvironments within biofilms and show a complexity that was hitherto unknown.

* Corresponding author. Mailing address: Department of Molecular & Cellular Biology and AFMnet-NCE, College of Biological Science, University of Guelph, Guelph, Ontario N1G 2W1, Canada. Phone: (519) 824-4120, ext. 58904. Fax: (519) 837-1802. E-mail: rhunte01{at}uoguelph.ca.

Journal of Bacteriology, November 2005, p. 7619-7630, Vol. 187, No. 22
0021-9193/05/$08.00+0     doi:10.1128/JB.187.22.7619-7630.2005
Copyright © 2005, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.



This article has been cited by other articles:

  • Schooling, S. R., Hubley, A., Beveridge, T. J. (2009). Interactions of DNA with Biofilm-Derived Membrane Vesicles. J. Bacteriol. 191: 4097-4102 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Palsdottir, H., Remis, J. P., Schaudinn, C., O'Toole, E., Lux, R., Shi, W., McDonald, K. L., Costerton, J. W., Auer, M. (2009). Three-Dimensional Macromolecular Organization of Cryofixed Myxococcus xanthus Biofilms as Revealed by Electron Microscopic Tomography. J. Bacteriol. 191: 2077-2082 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Behlau, I., Gilmore, M. S. (2008). Microbial Biofilms in Ophthalmology and Infectious Disease. Arch Ophthalmol 126: 1572-1581 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Stukalov, O., Korenevsky, A., Beveridge, T. J., Dutcher, J. R. (2008). Use of Atomic Force Microscopy and Transmission Electron Microscopy for Correlative Studies of Bacterial Capsules. Appl. Environ. Microbiol. 74: 5457-5465 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Atabek, A., Camesano, T. A. (2007). Atomic Force Microscopy Study of the Effect of Lipopolysaccharides and Extracellular Polymers on Adhesion of Pseudomonas aeruginosa. J. Bacteriol. 189: 8503-8509 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Palmer, R. J. Jr., Stoodley, P. (2007). Biofilms 2007: Broadened Horizons and New Emphases. J. Bacteriol. 189: 7948-7960 [Full Text]  


Copyright © 2009 by the American Society for Microbiology.   For an alternate route to Journals.ASM.org, visit: http://intl-journals.asm.org | More Info»