Linking spatial drug heterogeneity to microbial growth dynamics in theory and experiment.

ABSTRACT: Diffusion and migration play pivotal roles in microbial communities - shaping, for example, colonization in new environments and the maintenance of spatial structures of biodiversity. While previous research has extensively studied free diffusion, such as range expansion, there remains a gap in understanding the effects of biologically or physically deleterious confined environments. In this study, we examine the interplay between migration and spatial drug heterogeneity within an experimental meta-community of E. faecalis, a Gram-positive opportunistic pathogen. When the community is confined to spatially-extended habitats ('islands') bordered by deleterious conditions, we find that the population level response depends on the trade-off between the growth rate within the isl

SUBMITTER: Hu Z 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC11601811 | biostudies-literature | 2024 Nov

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature