Conductive Filaments Produced by Aeromonas hydrophila

Abstract

Aeromonas hydrophilais a facultative anaerobe which, under conditions of oxygen depletion, is able to respire iron (III). Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and conducting-probe atomic force microscopy (AFM) revealed the presence of filaments between cells and cell-substrate and their conductive nature. These results indicate that the pili ofA. hydrophilamight serve as biological nanowires, transferring electrons from the cell to the surface of Fe (III) oxides. Conductive pili could also play a role in bacterial interactions and in inter/intra species signalling, and could lead to biotechnological approaches for novel materials.