Dataset Information

A collective mechanism for phase variation in biofilms.

ABSTRACT: Understanding how microbes gather into biofilm communities and maintain diversity remains one of the central questions of microbiology, requiring an understanding of microbes as communal rather then individual organisms. Phase variation plays an integral role in the formation of diverse phenotypes within biofilms. We propose a collective mechanism for phase variation based on gene transfer agents, and apply the theory to predict the population structure and growth dynamics of a biofilm. Our results describe quantitatively recent experiments, with the only adjustable parameter being the rate of intercellular horizontal gene transfer. Our approach derives from a more general picture for the emergence of cooperation between microbes.

SUBMITTER: Chia N

PROVIDER: S-EPMC2567205 | biostudies-other | 2008 Sep

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-other

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A collective mechanism for phase variation in biofilms.

Chia Nicholas N Woese Carl R CR Goldenfeld Nigel N

Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America 20080917 38

Understanding how microbes gather into biofilm communities and maintain diversity remains one of the central questions of microbiology, requiring an understanding of microbes as communal rather then individual organisms. Phase variation plays an integral role in the formation of diverse phenotypes within biofilms. We propose a collective mechanism for phase variation based on gene transfer agents, and apply the theory to predict the population structure and growth dynamics of a biofilm. Our resu ...[more]

PMID: 18799735

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Project description:In our digital societies, individuals massively interact through digital interfaces whose impact on collective dynamics can be important. In particular, the combination of social media filters and recommender systems can lead to the emergence of polarized and fragmented groups. In some social contexts, such segregation processes of human groups have been shown to share similarities with phase separation phenomena in physics. Here, we study the impact of information filtering on collective segregation behaviour of human groups. We report a series of experiments where groups of 22 subjects have to perform a collective segregation task that mimics the tendency of individuals to bond with other similar individuals. More precisely, the participants are each assigned a colour (red or blue) unknown to them, and have to regroup with other subjects sharing the same colour. To assist them, they are equipped with an artificial sensory device capable of detecting the majority colour in their 'environment' (defined as their k nearest neighbours, unbeknownst to them), for which we control the perception range, k = 1, 3, 5, 7, 9, 11, 13. We study the separation dynamics (emergence of unicolour groups) and the properties of the final state, and show that the value of k controls the quality of the segregation, although the subjects are totally unaware of the precise definition of the 'environment'. We also find that there is a perception range k = 7 above which the ability of the group to segregate does not improve. We introduce a model that precisely describes the random motion of a group of pedestrians in a confined space, and which faithfully reproduces and allows interpretation of the results of the segregation experiments. Finally, we discuss the strong and precise analogy between our experiment and the phase separation of two immiscible materials at very low temperature. This article is part of the theme issue 'Multi-scale analysis and modelling of collective migration in biological systems'.

Dataset Information

A collective mechanism for phase variation in biofilms.

Publications

A collective mechanism for phase variation in biofilms.

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