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Immotile Active Matter: Activity from Death and Reproduction
Arben Kalziqi1, David Yanni1, Jacob Thomas2
1School of Physics, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, Georgia 30332, USA.
Physical Review Letters
|January 20, 2018
Summary
Biofilm mechanical properties are influenced by bacterial reproduction and death, not just movement. These cellular life events create an effective temperature, similar to thermal fluctuations, and can fluidize biofilms.
Area of Science:
- Soft matter physics
- Microbiology
- Biophysics
Background:
- Biofilms, unlike atomic solids, exhibit mechanical responses due to cellular life events like reproduction and death.
- Active matter research typically focuses on constituent mobility, not cellular life cycles.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the mechanical consequences of cellular death and reproduction in biofilms.
- To explore biofilm activity mediated by life events rather than cell mobility.
Main Methods:
- Measuring surface-height fluctuations of Vibrio cholerae biofilms using white light interferometry.
- Comparing antagonistic and non-antagonistic bacterial strains.
- Utilizing individual-based simulations for validation.
Main Results:
- Biofilm surface-height fluctuation spectra resemble those of thermal membranes with an activity-mediated effective temperature.
- Effective temperature increases with the rate of bacterial death and reproduction.
- Cellular death and reproduction were shown to fluidize biofilms.
Conclusions:
- Cellular death and reproduction act as a source of activity in biofilms, analogous to thermal fluctuations.
- This activity, mediated by life events, significantly impacts biofilm mechanics, including fluidization.
- The study highlights unique physical consequences of life-cycle-driven activity in biological soft solids.
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