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Updated: Apr 29, 2026

Super-resolution Imaging of the Bacterial Division Machinery
Published on: January 21, 2013
Angle-resolved light scattering of individual rod-shaped bacteria based on Fourier transform light scattering
YoungJu Jo1, JaeHwang Jung1, Jee Woong Lee2
1Department of Physics, Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology, Daejeon 305-701, Republic of Korea.
Abstract:
Two-dimensional angle-resolved light scattering maps of individual rod-shaped bacteria are measured at the single-cell level. Using quantitative phase imaging and Fourier transform light scattering techniques, the light scattering patterns of individual bacteria in four rod-shaped species (Bacillus subtilis, Lactobacillus casei, Synechococcus elongatus, and Escherichia coli) are measured with unprecedented sensitivity in a broad angular range from -70° to 70°. The measured light scattering patterns are analyzed along the two principal axes of rod-shaped bacteria in order to systematically investigate the species-specific characteristics of anisotropic light scattering. In addition, the cellular dry mass of individual bacteria is calculated and used to demonstrate that the cell-to-cell variations in light scattering within bacterial species is related to the cellular dry mass and growth.
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