Collective peroxide detoxification determines microbial mutation rate plasticity in E. coli.

ABSTRACT: Mutagenesis is responsive to many environmental factors. Evolution therefore depends on the environment not only for selection but also in determining the variation available in a population. One such environmental dependency is the inverse relationship between mutation rates and population density in many microbial species. Here, we determine the mechanism responsible for this mutation rate plasticity. Using dynamical computational modelling and in culture mutation rate estimation, we show that the negative relationship between mutation rate and population density arises from the collective ability of microbial populations to control concentrations of hydrogen peroxide. We demonstrate a loss of this density-associated mutation rate plasticity (DAMP) when Escherichia coli populations are d

SUBMITTER: Green R 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC11272383 | biostudies-literature | 2024 Jul

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature