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Change in membrane potential during bacterial chemotaxis

S Szmelcman, J Adler

    Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America
    |December 1, 1976
    PubMed
    Summary
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    Bacterial chemotaxis involves changes in membrane potential, indicated by a hyperpolarizing peak observed when attractants or repellents are added. This membrane potential shift is crucial for bacterial movement and sensing chemical signals.

    Area of Science:

    • Microbiology
    • Cellular Biology
    • Biophysics

    Background:

    • Bacterial chemotaxis is a fundamental process enabling cells to navigate chemical gradients.
    • Understanding the biophysical changes accompanying chemotaxis is key to deciphering bacterial behavior.

    Purpose of the Study:

    • To investigate alterations in bacterial membrane potential during chemotaxis.
    • To determine if membrane potential changes are integral to the chemotactic response in Escherichia coli.

    Main Methods:

    • Indirect measurement of membrane potential using the lipophilic cation triphenylmethylphosphonium in Escherichia coli.
    • Analysis of membrane potential responses to various chemical attractants and repellents.
    • Comparison of responses in wild-type bacteria, chemotaxis mutants (che, mot), and mutants with altered taxis specificity.

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    Main Results:

    • Addition of chemotactic stimuli induced a distinct hyperpolarizing peak in membrane potential.
    • This peak was absent with non-chemotactic substances.
    • Mutant analyses confirmed the involvement of specific chemotaxis genes (flaI, mot) and demonstrated that general non-chemotactic mutants (che) still exhibited the membrane potential response.

    Conclusions:

    • A transient hyperpolarization of the membrane potential is a conserved feature of bacterial chemotaxis.
    • Ion fluxes across the cell membrane are likely responsible for this potential change.
    • The study proposes a model where the mot gene product acts as an ion gate, regulated by methylation-demethylation in response to chemotactic signals.