Regensburg 2010 – scientific programme
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BP: Fachverband Biologische Physik
BP 26: From Single-Molecule to Tissue Dynamics
BP 26.9: Talk
Thursday, March 25, 2010, 16:30–16:45, H43
Transition to clustering in bacterial colonies: myxobacteria mutants as self-propelled rods — •Fernando Peruani1, Joern Starruss2, Markus Baer3, Andreas Deutsch2, Vladimir Jakovlievic4, and Lotte Sogaard-Andersen4 — 1Service de Physique de l Etat Condense, CEA Saclay, 91191 Gif-sur-Yvette, France — 2ZIH, Technische Universitaet Dresden, Zellescher Weg 12, 01069, Dresden, Germany — 3Physikalisch-Technische Bundesanstalt, Abbestr. 2-12, 10587 Berlin, Germany — 4Max Planck Institute for Terrestrial Microbiology, Karl-von-Frisch Str. 35043 Marburg, Germany
Myxobacteria, as many other bacteria, exhibit a transition from unicellularity to multicellularity when the level of nutrients is low. This fascinating process starts with the onset of clustering and collective motion. In contrast to Dictyostelium discoideum and other microorganisms, myxobacteria aggregate and coordinate their motion, in this early stage, without making use of diffusing chemical signals. We show through experiments with the mutant A+S-Frz- of M. xanthus, as well as through theoretical models, that is the active motion of the cells plus their rod-like shape what presumably allows cells to exhibit such collective effects. Provided the cell density is above a given threshold, a transition to clustering occurs. The cluster size statistics from experimental data can be reproduced by a simple models for self-propelled rods.