Evidence map›Paper›PMID 39894846›Full record

ArticleNPJ biofilms and microbiomes2025

Soft X-ray tomography reveals variations in B. subtilis biofilm structure upon tasA deletion.

Anthoula Chatzimpinou, Anne Diehl, A Tobias Harhoff, Kristina Driller, Bieke Vanslembrouck, Jian-Hua Chen, Kristaps Kairišs, Valentina Loconte, Mark A Le Gros, Carolyn Larabell and 3 more

Abstract read
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Article in NPJ biofilms and microbiomes, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 2 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
2citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

2 citing papers in PubMed.

  1. Review
  2. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

13 authors.

Anthoula ChatzimpinouCentre for Organismal Studies, Heidelberg University, Heidelberg, Germany.
Anne DiehlLeibniz-Forschungsinstitut für Molekulare Pharmakologie, Berlin, Germany.
A Tobias HarhoffCentre for Organismal Studies, Heidelberg University, Heidelberg, Germany.
Kristina DrillerMax Planck Unit for the Science of Pathogens, Leibniz Universität, Hannover, Germany.
Bieke VanslembrouckMolecular Biophysics and Integrated Bioimaging Division, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, CA, USA.
Jian-Hua ChenMolecular Biophysics and Integrated Bioimaging Division, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, CA, USA.
Kristaps KairišsCentre for Organismal Studies, Heidelberg University, Heidelberg, Germany.
Valentina LoconteMolecular Biophysics and Integrated Bioimaging Division, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, CA, USA.
Mark A Le GrosMolecular Biophysics and Integrated Bioimaging Division, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, CA, USA.
Carolyn LarabellMolecular Biophysics and Integrated Bioimaging Division, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, CA, USA.
Kürşad TurgayMax Planck Unit for the Science of Pathogens, Leibniz Universität, Hannover, Germany.
Hartmut OschkinatLeibniz-Forschungsinstitut für Molekulare Pharmakologie, Berlin, Germany. oschkinat@fmp-berlin.de.
Venera WeinhardtCentre for Organismal Studies, Heidelberg University, Heidelberg, Germany. venera.weinhardt@cos.uni-heidelberg.de.

Funding

User Training and OutreachP30GM138441 · NIGMS · UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA, SAN FRANCISCO · PI LARABELL, CAROLYN A · 2020 to 2023
$3.7M
Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft SPP1879DOE Biological and Environmental Research Project DE-AC02-05CH11231Excellence Strategy of the Federal and State Governments of Germany 3D Matter Made to OrderH2020 European Research Council 101017116HORIZON EUROPE Marie Sklodowska-Curie Actions 101120151Joachim Herz Stiftung cohort 2022NIGMS NIH HHS P30 GM138441NIH NIGMS P30GM138441
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Bacterial biofilms are complex cell communities within a self-produced extracellular matrix, crucial in various fields but challenging to analyze in 3D. We developed a "biofilm-in-capillary" growth method compatible with full-rotation soft X-ray tomography, enabling high-resolution 3D imaging of bacterial cells and their matrix during biofilm formation. This approach offers 50 nm isotropic spatial resolution, rapid imaging, and quantitative native analysis of biofilm structure. Using Bacillus subtilis biofilms, we detected coherent alignment and chaining of wild-type cells towards the oxygen-rich capillary tip. In contrast, the ΔtasA genetic knock-out showed a loss of cellular orientation and changes in the extracellular matrix. Adding TasA protein to the ΔtasA strain restored matrix density and led to cell assembly compaction, but without the chaining observed in wild-type biofilms. This scalable and transferable approach opens new avenues for examining biofilm structure and function across various species, including mixed biofilms, and response to genetic and environmental factors.

Indexed as

Bacillus subtilisBacterial ProteinsBiofilmsTomography, X-RayExtracellular MatrixGene DeletionImaging, Three-DimensionalBacterial ProteinsTasA protein, Bacillus subtilis

Identifiers

PMID39894846
PMCPMC11788442

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY-NC-ND
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.