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Monitoring Spatial Segregation in Surface Colonizing Microbial Populations
Published on: October 29, 2016
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Patchiness in a microhabitat chip affects evolutionary dynamics of bacterial cooperation
Edward W Tekwa1, Dao Nguyen2, David Juncker3
1Department of Biology, McGill University, 1205 Dr. Penfield, Montreal, QC, H3A 1B1, Canada. tek.wa.wong@mail.mcgill.ca.
Lab on a Chip
|July 31, 2015
Summary
Habitat patchiness, or the greater edge-to-area ratio, can help maintain cooperation in microbial populations. This study used a microhabitat chip to show how spatial structure impacts the evolution of cooperation.
Area of Science:
- Ecology
- Evolutionary Biology
- Microbiology
Background:
- Localized interactions are predicted to promote cooperation.
- Habitat patchiness is a key factor that can localize interactions.
- Cooperation is particularly relevant in pathogenic microbes inhabiting patchy environments like the respiratory tract.
Purpose of the Study:
- To test the hypothesis that greater habitat patchiness facilitates the maintenance of cooperation.
- To investigate the eco-evolutionary dynamics of cooperation in a spatially controlled setting.
- To understand the role of spatial heterogeneity in the evolution of cooperation.
Main Methods:
- Designed a transparent microhabitat chip (MHC) with varying patchiness treatments at the 100-micron scale.
- Used the opportunistic pathogen Pseudomonas aeruginosa, tracking wild-type cooperators (producing pyoverdin) against mutant defectors (cheaters).
- Observed bacterial replication, survival, spatial patterns, and eco-evolutionary dynamics in a closed system for up to 18 hours.
Main Results:
- Defectors generally outperformed cooperators across all habitats.
- Habitat patchiness significantly reduced the ecological disadvantage faced by cooperators.
- Coexistence of cooperators and defectors was observed, indicating alleviated pressure against cooperation.
Conclusions:
- Habitat-level spatial heterogeneity is crucial for the maintenance of cooperation.
- The microhabitat chip (MHC) provides a novel platform for studying spatial ecology and pathogen evolution.
- Understanding spatial dynamics is key to uncovering features of pathogen evolution and cooperation.
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