Mechanical stability of individual bacterial cells under different osmotic pressure conditions: a nanoindentation study of <i>Pseudomonas aeruginosa</i>.

ABSTRACT: Nanomechanical maps to test the mechanical response of the outer envelope of Pseudomonas aeruginosa were obtained utilizing atomic force microscopy in force-volume mode in the low range of loading forces when exposed to hypotonic (Milli-Q water), isotonic (PBS), and hypertonic (0.5 M NaCl) solutions. Imaging and mechanical testing showed that bacteria are highly resilient to deformation and can withstand repetitive indentations in the range of 500 pN. Analysis of force spectra revealed that although there are differences in the mechanical response within the first stages of nanoindentation, similar values in the slopes of the curves reflected a stable stiffness of about k _B = 20 mN/m and turgor pressures of P _t = 12.1 kPa. Interestingly, a change

SUBMITTER: Garcia-Torres L 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12302410 | biostudies-literature | 2025

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature