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Peptide autoinducers in bacteria

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Abstract

The review classifies and analyzes the literature data on bacterial peptide autoinducers (AIs), responsible for intra- and interspecies communication (quorum sensing) between bacterial populations. The most important families of peptide AI are discussed, including a large group of bacteriocins, subdivided into lantibiotics (class I), unmodified heat-stable bacteriocins (II), large bacteriocins with Mr > 30 kDa (III), and “circular” bacteriocins (IV), as well as CSP peptides (Competence-Stimulating Peptides), peptides with thiolactone and lactone cycles, and short tryptophan-containing peptides with pheromone activity. The sensor systems are discussed, which recognize peptide AIs and regulate the activity of bacterial intracellular effector systems. For different families of peptide AIs, the typical features of structural organization are determined, which are responsible for their biological activity

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  1. Laboratory of Molecular Endocrinology, Sechenov Institute of Evolutionary Physiology and Biochemistry, Russian Academy of Sciences, prosp. Toreza, 44, St. Petersburg, 194223, Russia

    A. O. Shpakov

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  1. A. O. Shpakov
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Original Russian Text © A.O. Shpakov, 2009, published in Mikrobiologiya, 2009, Vol. 78, No. 3, pp. 291–303.

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Shpakov, A.O. Peptide autoinducers in bacteria. Microbiology 78, 255–266 (2009). https://doi.org/10.1134/S0026261709030011

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1134/S0026261709030011

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