Background
Infections caused by avian pathogenic Escherichia coli (APEC) result in significant economic losses in poultry industry. APEC strains are known to form biofilms in various conditions allowing them to thrive even under harsh and nutrient-deficient conditions on different surfaces, and this ability enables them to evade chemical and biological eradication
Conclusions
The study has elucidated the role of these genes in APEC biofilm formation and compared them to adhesion expanding the knowledge and understanding of the economically significant pathogens.
Results
In this study, we report seven genes i.e., nhaA, fdeC, yjhB, lysU, ecpR, AJB35136 and fdtA of APEC with significant contribution to biofilm formation. Reintroduction of AJB35136 and fdtA, reversed the altered phenotype proving that a significant role being played by these two O-antigen related genes in APEC biofilm formation. Presence of these seven genes across nonpathogenic E. coli and APEC genomes was also analyzed showing that they are more prevalent in the latter. Conclusions: The study has elucidated the role of these genes in APEC biofilm formation and compared them to adhesion expanding the knowledge and understanding of the economically significant pathogens.