Evidence map›Paper›PMID 41574816›Full record

ReviewGut microbes2026

Autoinducer 2 as a universal language in microbial consortia: decoding molecular mechanisms, ecological impacts, and application.

Shuyu Guo, Bingyong Mao, Xin Tang, Qiuxiang Zhang, Jianxin Zhao, Wei Chen, Shumao Cui

Abstract readReview
In one paragraph

Review in Gut microbes, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 6 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
6citing 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

6 citing papers in PubMed.

  1. Review
  2. Review
  3. Article
  4. Review
  5. Review
  6. Review
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

7 authors.

Shuyu GuoState Key Laboratory of Food Science and Resources, Jiangnan University, Wuxi, People's Republic of China.
Bingyong MaoState Key Laboratory of Food Science and Resources, Jiangnan University, Wuxi, People's Republic of China.
Xin TangState Key Laboratory of Food Science and Resources, Jiangnan University, Wuxi, People's Republic of China.
Qiuxiang ZhangState Key Laboratory of Food Science and Resources, Jiangnan University, Wuxi, People's Republic of China.
Jianxin ZhaoState Key Laboratory of Food Science and Resources, Jiangnan University, Wuxi, People's Republic of China.
Wei ChenState Key Laboratory of Food Science and Resources, Jiangnan University, Wuxi, People's Republic of China.
Shumao CuiState Key Laboratory of Food Science and Resources, Jiangnan University, Wuxi, People's Republic of China.ORCID 0000-0002-7055-0484

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

In natural and engineered ecosystems, diverse species interact in complex ways to form highly efficient microecologies. One key orchestrator of these interactions is autoinducer-2 (AI-2), a signaling molecule that plays a crucial role in microbial community assembly, metabolic flux, and resilience to environmental disturbances. This review provides the systematic synthesis of AI-2's dual structural dynamics (S-THMF-borate/R-THMF interconversion) and its context-dependent roles in mediating bacterial crosstalk. It also reveals the receptor diversity (such as LuxP and LsrB) of AI-2 in bacterial kingdom and the signal transduction mechanism. Systematically elaborated on AI-2's regulation of cellular metabolic flux and its ability to autonomously exhibit a series of coordinated behaviors in response to environmental changes. The review explores the ramifications of AI-2 on bacterial community interactions in synthetic biology and natural ecosystems. The wide application of AI-2-mediated interspecific communication in various fields including host health, agriculture, industry and environmental ecology has also been widely discussed. Factors influencing AI-2 production are thoroughly examined, including internal factors such as strain specificity, cell density, growth form and the phenotypic heterogeneity. Additionally, external biological factors (such as nutritional status and environmental stress) and abiotic factors (aggregation, diffusion, and flow) are discussed in detail. By examining knowledge gaps in AI-2-mediated spatial heterogeneity and multi-QS system coordination, this work charts a roadmap for harnessing microbial communication in chemical engineering and environmental sustainability.

Indexed as

BacteriaHomoserineLactonesMicrobial ConsortiaEcosystemQuorum SensingSignal TransductionHomoserineLactonesN-octanoylhomoserine lactoneapplicationAutoinducer 2interspecific interactionsmulti-receptorsproductionquorum sensingregulationsynthesis

Identifiers

PMID41574816
PMCPMC12834153

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY
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.