Talk:Biofilm
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See Talk:Bacterial lawn for the origins of this page. Jmeppley 21:20, 7 Sep 2004 (UTC)
[edit] Pili v Fimbriae
Pili used for attachment... isn't fimbriae the more accurate term?
- Sure, but there's an argument to be made for using more general language in a reference work. I'd actually never seen the term fimbriae til just now so either that's support for my case or an argument that I shouldn't be the one deciding this.
- PS. Please sign your talk posts using ~~~ or ~~~~ so it's easier to see who wrote what without going back and forth to the history. Jmeppley 23:46, 2 November 2005 (UTC)
I totally agree with you here. Pili are generally longer than fimbriae, and less common on the surface. They are also by definition made of pilin and are hollow - they do not contain the thick, sticky polysaccharide matrix required for biofilm formation. This should be edited out of the article in my opinion. --BillyBoy 11:08, 5 April 2006 (UTC)
- The pili (or whatever attachment mechanism is used) have nothing directly to do with the EPS matrix. The pili are only important in the initial atachment phase where a single cell is attaching to a surface. Once attached, the matrix is exuded to hold the growing community together and protect it. Fimbria don't conatin EPS matrix either.
- Again, I'm just learning the molecular biology (I'm interested in biofilms as an ecologist), but I have seen pili referenced many places as important in the initial phases of biofilm formation. For example from Pratt and Kolter 1999: "Indeed, type I pili are required for E. coli biofilm formation on all surfaces tested".
- From the pilus article: "A fimbrium ... is a short pilus that is used to attach the cell to a surface". As near as I can tell, type I pili and fimbria are the same thing. Jmeppley 17:43, 5 April 2006 (UTC)
[edit] Vandalism
There's some vandalism at the bottom of the page, I thought it would be fine for me to delete it.
