| Summary: | Autoinducer 2 (AI-2) is a ubiquitous metabolite but, instead of acting as a “universal signal,” relatively few phenotypes have been associated with it, and many scientists believe AI-2 is often a metabolic byproduct rather than a signal. Here, the aim is to present evidence that AI-2 influences both biofilm formation and motility (swarming and chemotaxis), using <i>Escherichia coli</i> as the model system, to establish AI-2 as a true signal with an important physiological role in this bacterium. In addition, AI-2 signaling is compared to the other primary signal of <i>E. coli</i>, indole, and it is shown that they have opposite effects on biofilm formation and virulence.
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