Sensors 2010, 10(4), 4010-4039; doi:10.3390/s100404010
Review

Phototactic and Chemotactic Signal Transduction by Transmembrane Receptors and Transducers in Microorganisms

Daisuke Suzuki 1 email, Hiroki Irieda 1 email, Michio Homma 1 email, Ikuro Kawagishi 2,3 email and Yuki Sudo 1,4,* email
1 Division of Biological Science, Graduate School of Science, Nagoya University, Chikusa-ku, Nagoya, 464-8602, Japan 2 Department of Frontier Bioscience, Hosei University, Koganei, Tokyo, 184-8584, Japan 3 Research Center for Micro-Nano Technology, Hosei University, Koganei, Tokyo, 184-8584, Japan 4 PRESTO, Japan Science and Technology Agency (JST), 4-1-8 Honcho Kawaguchi, Saitama, 332-0012, Japan
* Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Received: 28 January 2010; in revised form: 29 March 2010 / Accepted: 9 April 2010 / Published: 20 April 2010
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Transducers)
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Abstract: Microorganisms show attractant and repellent responses to survive in the various environments in which they live. Those phototaxic (to light) and chemotaxic (to chemicals) responses are regulated by membrane-embedded receptors and transducers. This article reviews the following: (1) the signal relay mechanisms by two photoreceptors, Sensory Rhodopsin I (SRI) and Sensory Rhodopsin II (SRII) and their transducers (HtrI and HtrII) responsible for phototaxis in microorganisms; and (2) the signal relay mechanism of a chemoreceptor/transducer protein, Tar, responsible for chemotaxis in E. coli. Based on results mainly obtained by our group together with other findings, the possible molecular mechanisms for phototaxis and chemotaxis are discussed.
Keywords: phototaxis; chemotaxis; transducer; signal transduction; rhodopsin

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Cite This Article

MDPI and ACS Style

Suzuki, D.; Irieda, H.; Homma, M.; Kawagishi, I.; Sudo, Y. Phototactic and Chemotactic Signal Transduction by Transmembrane Receptors and Transducers in Microorganisms. Sensors 2010, 10, 4010-4039.

AMA Style

Suzuki D, Irieda H, Homma M, Kawagishi I, Sudo Y. Phototactic and Chemotactic Signal Transduction by Transmembrane Receptors and Transducers in Microorganisms. Sensors. 2010; 10(4):4010-4039.

Chicago/Turabian Style

Suzuki, Daisuke; Irieda, Hiroki; Homma, Michio; Kawagishi, Ikuro; Sudo, Yuki. 2010. "Phototactic and Chemotactic Signal Transduction by Transmembrane Receptors and Transducers in Microorganisms." Sensors 10, no. 4: 4010-4039.

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