Directed migration shapes cooperation in spatial ecological public goods games.

ABSTRACT: From the microscopic to the macroscopic level, biological life exhibits directed migration in response to environmental conditions. Chemotaxis enables microbes to sense and move towards nutrient-rich regions or to avoid toxic ones. Socio-economic factors drive human populations from rural to urban areas. The effect of collective movement is especially significant when triggered in response to the generation of public goods. Microbial communities can, for instance, alter their environment through the secretion of extracellular substances. Some substances provide antibiotic-resistance, others provide access to nutrients or promote motility. However, in all cases the maintenance of public goods requires costly cooperation and is consequently susceptible to exploitation. The threat of exploita

SUBMITTER: Funk F 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6687102 | biostudies-literature | 2019 Aug

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature