RT Conference Proceedings
T1 Biofilms as Bioelectric Networks. Understanding Their Response to Neural Signals
A1 Mansilla Guardiola, Jesús
A1 Benítez-Cruz, Javier
A1 Murciano Cespedosa, Antonio
A1 Conejero Meca, Francisco José
A1 Quarta, Elisa
A1 Geuna, Stefano
A1 Trasobares Sánchez, Jorge
A1 Lombardo-Hernández, Juan
A1 Rapetta, Ivana
A1 García Esteban, María Teresa
A1 Herrera Rincón, Celia
AB Information processing in biological systems presupposes communication, whetherwith other organisms, the environment (learning and stigmergy), or one’s past or futureselves (memory and prediction). How do individual cells (neurons, bacteria) usecommunication to build emergent complex beings like brains and colonial superorganisms? How does information within a whole, such as a vertebrate animal orbiofilm, relate to the information processed by its individual components (cells)? Giventhat both neurons and bacteria utilize bioelectrical signals, could this serve as amechanism for intercellular communication between these two entities?Our previous studies demonstrated that bacteria respond specifically toneurotransmitter cues. We analyzed Escherichia coli, Limosilactobacillus reuteri, andEnterococcus faecalis, key members of the human microbiota, with the latter twospecies capable of transitioning to pathogenic states. Neural-type stimuli alteredbacterial membrane potential (Vmem) without affecting growth or viability, indicatingthat bacteria can depolarize or hyperpolarize in response to external signals. However,whether biofilms—structured bacterial communities with enhanced informationprocessing capabilities—exhibit dynamic responses to neural signals remainsunknown.In this study, we investigated the bioelectrical responses of bacterial biofilms to neuralstimuli. Using the Vmem-sensitive fluorescent dye thioflavin T, which indicateshyperpolarization, we monitored 24-hour-old biofilms over three hours under confocalmicroscopy, comparing untreated biofilms to those exposed to glutamate (Glu). Ourresults reveal that bacterial biofilms exhibit a coordinated bioelectrical response to Gluexposure, distinct from planktonic cultures. Unlike individual bacterial cells, whichrespond independently, biofilms displayed a synchronized shift in Vmem uponexposure to neurotransmitters, suggesting intercellular communication within thebiofilm structure.These findings suggest that biofilms, much like neural networks, utilize dynamic andsynchronized bioelectrical signals to process external stimuli. This opens new avenuesfor understanding bacterial behavior and targeting bioelectric signaling at the interfaceof bacteria and neurons, particularly in systems such as the microbiota-Gut-brain axis.
YR 2025
FD 2025-09
LK https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.14352/130358
UL https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.14352/130358
LA eng
NO The BBI group would like to express its gratitude to the Spanish Ministry of Science andInnovation for supporting this project trough a generous grant including a predoctoral FPIfellowship (PID2023-147361NA-I00) to J. B-C, co-funded by the European Union. Wealso want to express our gratitude the Complutense University of Madrid for providing thenecessary infrastructure and facilitating collaboration with the University of Turin(UNITO). Finally, we extend our appreciation to all participants who contributed to thedevelopment of this project.
NO Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovación (España)
NO Unión Europea
DS Docta Complutense
RD 17 ene 2026