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. 1996 May 14;93(10):4999–5002. doi: 10.1073/pnas.93.10.4999

Escherichia coli exhibits negative chemotaxis in gradients of hydrogen peroxide, hypochlorite, and N-chlorotaurine: products of the respiratory burst of phagocytic cells.

L Benov 1, I Fridovich 1
PMCID: PMC39395  PMID: 8643518

Abstract

Escherichia coli can respond to gradients of specific compounds, moving up gradients of attractants and down gradients of repellents. Stimulated phagocytic leukocytes produce H2O2, OCl-, and N-chlorotaurine in a response termed the respiratory burst. E. coli is actively repelled by these compounds. Catalase in the suspending medium eliminated the effect of H2O2. Repulsion by H2O2 could be demonstrated with 1 microM H2O2, which is far below the level that caused overt toxicity. Strains with defects in the biosynthesis of glutathione or lacking hydroperoxidases I and II retained this response to H2O2, and 2.0 mM CN- did not interfere with it. Mutants with defects in any one of the four known methyl-accepting chemotaxis proteins also retained the ability to respond to H2O2, but a "gutted" mutant that was deleted for all four methyl-accepting chemotaxis proteins, as well as for CheA, CheW, CheR, CheB, CheY, and CheZ, did not respond to H2O2. Hypochlorite and N-chlorotaurine were also strongly repellent. Chemotaxis down gradients of H2O2, OCl-, and N-chlorotaurine may contribute to the survival of commensal or pathogenic microorganisms.

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Selected References

These references are in PubMed. This may not be the complete list of references from this article.

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