https://doi.org/10.1140/epje/s10189-024-00450-7
Regular Article - Living Systems
Surface conversion of the dynamics of bacteria escaping chemorepellents
1
Laboratoire de Géologie de Lyon-Terre Planètes Et Environnement, ENS de Lyon, University Claude Bernard, CNRS, 69342, Lyon, France
2
Laboratoire de Physique, ENS de Lyon, CNRS, 69342, Lyon, France
3
Laboratoire Jacques-Louis Lions, Université Paris Cité, Sorbonne University, CNRS, 75005, Paris, France
4
Centre for Genomic Regulation, C/ Dr Aiguader, 88, 08003, Barcelone, Spain
5
Institut Camille Jordan, University Claude Bernard, CNRS, 69100, Villeurbanne, France
b
laurence.lemelle@ens-lyon.fr
h
christophe.place@ens-lyon.fr
Received:
24
April
2024
Accepted:
3
September
2024
Published online:
15
September
2024
Flagellar swimming hydrodynamics confers a recognized advantage for attachment on solid surfaces. Whether this motility further enables the following environmental cues was experimentally explored. Motile E. coli (OD ~ 0.1) in a 100 µm-thick channel were exposed to off-equilibrium gradients set by a chemorepellent Ni(NO3)2-source (250 mM). Single bacterial dynamics at the solid surface was analyzed by dark-field videomicroscopy at a fixed position. The number of bacteria indicated their congregation into a wave escaping from the repellent source. Besides the high velocity drift in the propagation direction within the wave, an unexpectedly high perpendicular component drift was also observed. Swimming hydrodynamics CW-bends the bacteria trajectories during their primo approach to the surface (< 2 µm), and a high enough tumbling frequency likely preserves a notable lateral drift. This comprehension substantiates a survival strategy tailored to toxic environments, which involves drifting along surfaces, promoting the inception of colonization at the most advantageous sites.
Supplementary Information The online version contains supplementary material available at https://doi.org/10.1140/epje/s10189-024-00450-7.
© The Author(s) 2024
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