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Monitoring Spatial Segregation in Surface Colonizing Microbial Populations
Published on: October 29, 2016
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A passive mutualistic interaction promotes the evolution of spatial structure within microbial populations
Marie Marchal1, Felix Goldschmidt1,2, Selina N Derksen-Müller1,2
1Department of Environmental Microbiology, Eawag, Überlandstrasse 133, 8600, Dübendorf, Switzerland.
BMC Evolutionary Biology
|April 26, 2017
Summary
Organisms can evolve physical attachment to create spatial structure, facilitating the emergence of mutualistic interactions. This attachment mechanism allows for exclusive benefits, driving the evolution of cooperation between different genotypes.
Area of Science:
- Evolutionary biology
- Microbial ecology
- Systems biology
Background:
- Mutualistic interactions between genotypes are common but their evolutionary origins remain unclear.
- For mutualism to evolve, investment in a partner genotype must yield exclusive benefits.
- Spatial structure can facilitate the emergence of exclusive benefits in interactions.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate if organisms can evolve their own spatial structure through physical attachment.
- To test the hypothesis that attachment evolves when proximity to another species is advantageous.
Main Methods:
- Experimental evolution using combinations of *Escherichia coli* (E. coli) strains with reciprocal growth dependencies.
- Quantifying the evolution of cell-cell attachment over an 8-week period.
Main Results:
- Physical attachment between cells repeatedly evolved within 8 weeks of experimental evolution.
- Diverse mutations were identified as potentially contributing to the observed increase in attachment.
Conclusions:
- Passive beneficial interactions can select for attachment, which in turn creates spatial structure.
- This evolved spatial structure may promote the evolution of active mutualistic interactions between organisms.
Keywords:
Cell aggregationCross-feedingExperimental evolutionMicrobial populationsMutualismSpatial structureMore Related Videos
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