9 min listen
458: Slimy Cells Stop Sinking
FromBacterioFiles
ratings:
Length:
15 minutes
Released:
Jul 19, 2021
Format:
Podcast episode
Description
This episode: Bacteria can resist the force of gravity in liquid culture by covering themselves with goopy sugar polymers like parachutes! Download Episode (10.4 MB, 15.2 minutes) Show notes: Microbe of the episode: Brevicoryne brassicae virus Takeaways Put bacteria in a centrifuge, and most of the time you end up with a compact pellet of cells at the bottom of the tube, and mostly cell-free liquid above it. Bacteria do have ways to remain suspended in liquid, even without constant stirring or shaking of the container, but swimming, for example, consumes energy. In this study, artificial selection allowed the discovery of bacteria that could resist centrifuging speeds up to 15000 times the force of gravity, remaining suspended in liquid instead of forming a pellet. Production of polysaccharide was important, but not sufficient; for the most resistance to sinking, bacteria had to attach the polysaccharide to their cell surface, to act as a sort of parachute. Journal Paper: Kessler NG, Caraballo Delgado DM, Shah NK, Dickinson JA, Moore SD. 2021. Exopolysaccharide Anchoring Creates an Extreme Resistance to Sedimentation. J Bacteriol 203(11):e00023-21. Other interesting stories: Engineered probiotic yeast could help prevent vitamin A deficiency Email questions or comments to bacteriofiles at gmail dot com. Thanks for listening! Subscribe: Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Android, or RSS. Support the show at Patreon, or check out the show at Twitter or Facebook.
Released:
Jul 19, 2021
Format:
Podcast episode
Titles in the series (97)
394: Skinny Cell Structure Supports: This episode: Not as simple as it sounds—how rod-shaped bacteria maintain their shape! Thanks to Dr. Ethan Garner for his contribution! (6.3 MB, 9.2 minutes) Show notes: Microbe of the episode: Takeaways Microbes seem like they should be... by BacterioFiles