Chirality of tyrosine controls biofilm formation via the regulation of bacterial adhesion

Biofilm is the main cause of membrane biofouling and microbial corrosion . One of the most efficient strategies for biofilm reduction is inhibiting bacteria adhesion. In this study, we selected D -tyrosine to inhibit the adhesion of Escherichia coli , and the molecular response and metabolic pathways of E. coli were explored with transcriptome analysis . D -tyrosine could obviously inhibit the bacterial adhesion via lowering the adhesion force. The number of extracellular proteins decreased by 45% in the presence of D -tyrosine, leading to less hydrophobicity and autonomous aggregation of cells. Furthermore, transcriptome analysis showed that the inhibitory ability of D -tyrosine to the adhesion of E. coli decreased with time. At the initial stage, D -tyrosine could regulate tryptophan , curli, peptidoglycan , and adhesion-like protein synthesis , leading to less extracellular protein and lower cell hydrophobicity, and thus reduce cell aggregation and surface adhesion. This study provides a better understanding for the roles of D -amino acids in bacterial adhesion and develops a new strategy for biofilm reduction to mitigate membrane biofouling and microbial corrosion.