2023/11/21 by Souvik Bhattacharyya, Nabin Bhattarai, Dylan M. Pfannenstiel +3 · 2 voices · 2 citations
Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology · Social Sciences · #Evolution and Genetic Dynamics #Evolutionary Game Theory and Cooperation #Gene Regulatory Network Analysis
paper · doi:10.1073/pnas.2309082120
openalex publication_date 2023/11/21 · openalex created_date 2023/11/22 · openalex updated_date 2026/07/28
encounters a new surface, improving its future swarming efficiency. We conducted >10,000 single-cell swarm assays to discover that cells store memory in the form of cellular iron levels. This "iron" memory preexists in planktonic cells, but the act of swarming reinforces it. A cell with low iron initiates swarming early and is a better swarmer, while the opposite is true for a cell with high iron. The swarming potential of a mother cell, which tracks with its iron memory, is passed down to its fourth-generation daughter cells. This memory is naturally lost by the seventh generation, but artificially manipulating iron levels allows it to persist much longer. A mathematical model with a time-delay component faithfully recreates the observed dynamic interconversions between different swarming potentials. We demonstrate that cellular iron levels also track with biofilm formation and antibiotic tolerance, suggesting that iron memory may impact other physiologies.