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. 2019 Jun 28:8:e48695.
doi: 10.7554/eLife.48695.

How Legionella defend their turf

Elisa D Hughes  1 , Michele S Swanson  1
Affiliations

How Legionella defend their turf

Elisa D Hughes et al. Elife. .

Abstract

Communities of bacteria that cause Legionnaires' disease repel other bacteria by secreting an acid called HGA.

Keywords: Legionella micdadei; Legionella pneumophila; antimicrobial; homogentisic acid; infectious disease; inter-bacterial competition; microbiology; pyomelanin.

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Conflict of interest statement

EH, MS No competing interests declared

Figures

Figure 1.
Figure 1.. High-density colonies of Legionella protect themselves by secreting pulses of HGA.
The development of Legionella colonies begins with individual cells adhering to a surface, such as the inside of a water pipe. After reaching a certain density, the bacteria intensify the secretion of HGA, which prevents other Legionella cells from joining the colony. Image credit: Elisa D. Hughes (CC BY 4.0).
See this image and copyright information in PMC

Comment on

  • doi: 10.7554/eLife.46086

References

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