Bacteria make a beeline to escape tight spaces

The University of Hawai'i at Mānoa published a study that showed thatbacteria change their swimming patterns when they get into tight spaces.

Almost all organisms have a symbiotic relationship withbacteria. The Hawaiian bobtail squid, Euprymna scolopes, has an exclusive relationship with the marine bacterium Vibrio fischeri, which has a whip-like tail that it uses to swim to specific places in the squid's body.

A research team led by Jonathan Lynch, who was a postdoctoral fellow at the Pacific Biosciences Research Center, designed controlled chambers in which they could observe the vibriobacteria. The team discovered that thebacteria swim differently in tight and open spaces. They change their swimming behavior to avoid getting stuck.

The finding was quite surprising, as we were looking for how the cells changed their shape when they moved into tight spaces. We realized that it was because thebacteria were swimming out of the tight spaces, which we did not expect.

In open spaces, without chemicals to be attracted to or repelled from,bacteria appeared to meander with no apparent pattern, changing direction randomly and at different points in time. The bacteria were able to escape from confinement when they entered.

The relationship between the squid and the bacterium is a good example of howbacteria live with other animals. Microbes sometimes squeeze through tight spaces in tissues before colonizing preferred sites in their host organisms. A variety of chemicals and nutrients are found in hosts. Physical features like walls, corners, and tight spaces are found in many animal andbacteria relationships, but less is known about how they affect swimming.

The findings show that tight spaces may serve as an important cue for the organisms to enter certain habitats.

In the future, the researchers hope to figure out how thesebacteria are changing their swimming activity, as well as determine if otherbacteria show the same behaviors.

More information: Jonathan B. Lynch et al, Transitioning to confined spaces impacts bacterial swimming and escape response, Biophysical Journal (2022). DOI: 10.1016/j.bpj.2022.04.008 Journal information: Biophysical Journal Citation: Bacteria make a beeline to escape tight spaces (2022, May 3) retrieved 3 May 2022 from https://phys.org/news/2022-05-bacteria-beeline-tight-spaces.html This document is subject to copyright. Apart from any fair dealing for the purpose of private study or research, no part may be reproduced without the written permission. The content is provided for information purposes only.