Flagellar stator genes control a trophic shift from obligate to facultative predation and biofilm formation in a bacterial predator.

Abstract

The ability of bacteria to form biofilms is a central research theme in biology, medicine, and the environment. We show that cultures of the obligate (host-dependent) "solitary" predatory bacterium Bdellovibrio bacteriovorus, which cannot replicate without prey, can use various genetic routes to spontaneously yield host-independent (H-I) variants that grow axenically (as a single species, in the absence of prey) and exhibit various surface attachment phenotypes, including biofilm formation. These routes include single mutations in flagellar stator genes that affect biofilm formation, provoke motor instability and large motility defects, and disrupt cyclic-di-GMP intracellular signaling. H-I strains also exhibit reduced predatory efficiency in suspension but high efficiency in prey biofilms. These changes override the requirements for prey, enabling a shift from obligate to facultative predation, with potential consequences on community dynamics.