Reproduction of bacterial chemotaxis by a non-living self-propelled object.

ABSTRACT: Taxic behavior as a response to an external stimulus is a fundamental function of living organisms. Some bacteria successfully implement chemotaxis without directly controlling the direction of movement. They periodically alternate between run and tumble, i.e., straight movement and change in direction, respectively. They tune their running period depending on the concentration gradient of attractants around them. Consequently, they respond to a gentle concentration gradient stochastically, which is called "bacterial chemotaxis." In this study, such a stochastic response was reproduced by a non-living self-propelled object. We used a phenanthroline disk floating on an aqueous solution of Fe[Formula: see text]. The disk spontaneously alternated between rapid motion and rest, similar to the

SUBMITTER: Hamano Y 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10199926 | biostudies-literature | 2023 May

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature