Quantitation of the sensory response in bacterial chemotaxis

A quantitative assay for the stimulus-response relationship in bacterial chemotaxis has been developed by measurement of tumble frequency. Application of the assay has shown an additive relationship between changes in receptor occupancy and recovery times. Tumble suppression is related to the change in receptor occupancy and not to its rate of change. The results can be explained in terms of varying levels of a tumble regulator.