A symbiont-derived biosurfactant couples bacterial surface behavior and host peristalsis to control colonization
- 1Christian-Albrechts-Universitat zu Kiel
Abstract
Host mechanisms that regulate intestinal colonization are viewed as acting on microbes, yet microbial traits that determine susceptibility to host control remain poorly understood. Using the association between Caenorhabditis elegans and its symbiont Pseudomonas lurida MYb11, we identify the cyclic lipopeptide biosurfactant massetolide as a bacterial factor that couples microbial physiology to host-mediated clearance. An unbiased screen of >11,000 bacterial mutants coupled to a host transcriptional reporter, combined with bacterial and host genetics, chemical complementation, transcriptomics, and physiological analyses, revealed that massetolide triggers host TGF-{beta} and serotonergic signaling to promote intestinal peristalsis, limiting colonization. Massetolide also alters bacterial surface properties and promotes swarming. Experimentally increased serotonin-dependent peristalsis selectively reduces colonization by massetolide-producing bacteria, whereas massetolide-deficient bacteria remain resistant to host-mediated expulsion. Together, our findings reveal a symbiont-derived biosurfactant that links host neuroimmune control of intestinal peristalsis with bacterial susceptibility to expulsion, coupling host and microbial physiology to regulate symbiont abundance.
Related
- A novel bacterial symbiont in the seaweed Gracilaria tenuistipitata and its promising anti-inflammatory and antiproliferative potential in relation to special secreted metabolites
- SYMBIO-SCAN, a full-length 16S rRNA gene-based workflow optimized for bacterial symbiont detection and discovery from long read sequencing
- An engineered bacterial symbiont maps micron-scale sugar gradients in the honeybee gut
- Elevated Atmospheric CO₂ Modifies Symbiont-Associated Dispersal Behavior Under a Standardized Assay in an Aphid Clone.
- Optimization of bacterial colonization in the gut of axenic and conventional zebrafish larvae using live food
BibTeX
@misc{pees2026symbiontderived,
title = {{A symbiont-derived biosurfactant couples bacterial surface behavior and host peristalsis to control colonization}},
author = {B. Pees and C. Escudero-Hernandez and A. von Hoyningen-Huene and P. Rosenstiel and R. A. Schmitz and K. Dierking},
howpublished = {bioRxiv},
year = {2026},
month = sep,
doi = {10.64898/2026.09.18.752026},
url = {https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.64898/2026.09.18.752026v1},
note = {CC BY-NC-ND},
}
RIS
TY - UNPB
TI - A symbiont-derived biosurfactant couples bacterial surface behavior and host peristalsis to control colonization
AU - B. Pees
AU - C. Escudero-Hernandez
AU - A. von Hoyningen-Huene
AU - P. Rosenstiel
AU - R. A. Schmitz
AU - K. Dierking
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/09/18
PB - bioRxiv
DO - 10.64898/2026.09.18.752026
UR - https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.64898/2026.09.18.752026v1
AB - Host mechanisms that regulate intestinal colonization are viewed as acting on microbes, yet microbial traits that determine susceptibility to host control remain poorly understood. Using the association between Caenorhabditis elegans and its symbiont Pseudomonas lurida MYb11, we identify the cyclic lipopeptide biosurfactant massetolide as a bacterial factor that couples microbial physiology to host-mediated clearance. An unbiased screen of >11,000 bacterial mutants coupled to a host transcriptional reporter, combined with bacterial and host genetics, chemical complementation, transcriptomics, and physiological analyses, revealed that massetolide triggers host TGF-{beta} and serotonergic signaling to promote intestinal peristalsis, limiting colonization. Massetolide also alters bacterial surface properties and promotes swarming. Experimentally increased serotonin-dependent peristalsis selectively reduces colonization by massetolide-producing bacteria, whereas massetolide-deficient bacteria remain resistant to host-mediated expulsion. Together, our findings reveal a symbiont-derived biosurfactant that links host neuroimmune control of intestinal peristalsis with bacterial susceptibility to expulsion, coupling host and microbial physiology to regulate symbiont abundance.
ER -