Biofilm dispersal for spore release in Bacillus subtilis.

The dispersal of bacterial cells from a matured biofilm can be mediated either by active or passive mechanisms. In this issue of the Journal of Bacteriology, Nishikawa and Kobayashi demonstrate that the presence of calcium influences dispersal of spores from the pellicle biofilm of Bacillus subtilis The authors propose that temporal heterogeneity in matrix production and chelation of calcium by dipicolinic acid in spores weakens the biofilm matrix and causes passive dispersal.