PT  - JOURNAL ARTICLE
AU  - Dominique H. Limoli
AU  - Niles P. Donegan
AU  - Elizabeth A. Warren
AU  - Ambrose L. Cheung
AU  - George A. O’Toole
TI  - Interspecies signaling generates exploratory motility in <em>Pseudomonas aeruginosa</em>
AID  - 10.1101/607523
DP  - 2019 Jan 01
TA  - bioRxiv
PG  - 607523
4099  - http://biorxiv.org/content/early/2019/04/12/607523.short
4100  - http://biorxiv.org/content/early/2019/04/12/607523.full
AB  - Microbes often live in multispecies communities where interactions among community members impact both the individual constituents and the surrounding environment. Here, we developed a system to visualize interspecies behaviors at initial encounters. By imaging two prevalent pathogens known to be coisolated from chronic illnesses, Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Staphylococcus aureus, we observed P. aeruginosa can modify surface motility in response to secreted factors from S. aureus. Upon sensing S. aureus, P. aeruginosa transitioned from collective to single-cell motility with an associated increase in speed and directedness – a behavior we refer to as ‘exploratory motility’. Through modulation of cAMP, explorer cells moved preferentially towards S. aureus and invaded S. aureus colonies through the action of the type IV pili. These studies reveal previously undescribed motility behaviors and lend insight into how P. aeruginosa senses and responds to other species. Identifying strategies to harness these interactions may open avenues for new antimicrobial strategies.