Two U biologists have discovered a possible explanation for why chemical sensors cluster together on the ends of bacteria. Their research could lead to the improved treatment and early detection of bacterial infections.
John Parkinson, a professor of molecular biology, said that bacteria either swim toward or away from chemicals in its environment, depending on the nature of the chemical.
Parkinson said he thinks the receptors at the ends of a bacterium guide the organism towards a source.
“The receptors don’t work as individuals, but as teams of up to three. This is important in understanding how [the receptors] can be so sensitive to small changes in the environment,” Parkinson said.
Peter Ames, a research associate, is a member of Parkinson’s research team.
“I think that the idea of receptor clustering may be important for signaling not only in bacteria but in higher organisms,” he said.
Parkinson said that scientists have been working with E. coli for more than 60 years, and that despite the dangers associated with the bacteria in recent years, it is relatively harmless.
“E. coli is the default bacteria because it’s been used for so long. Almost everything we know about molecular biology we’ve learned from studying E. coli,” Parkinson said.
Although the study is only two years old, Parkinson said he was still surprised by some of the results of his work.
“I think the surprise was when we created receptor mutations. I had no idea what they did for a while, but once I realized it, everything fell into place. But that’s the fun part of doing science,” Parkinson said.
For Parkinson, the most significant part of his work is not only understanding how simple bacteria move, but how similar behavior in more complicated cells relates to the research done on E. coli.
“It would be surprising if more complex organisms didn’t use the same kinds of signaling systems,” Parkinson said.
Though Parkinson’s study is not a medical one, the results of his research could benefit doctors in the future.
“Other types of bacteria seem to use the same kind of receptors as E. coli. There’s a chance that we could short-circuit bacterial infections,” he noted.
If successful, this could stop bacterial infections in their early stages.
Parkinson said when these chemical sensors cluster together, they are able to amplify a weak signal into a strong one which directs the bacteria to a food source.
Parkinson’s research has been funded by the National Institute of Health for the past 25 years, and as he said, “Our work is done when they stop funding us, or when we all keel over.”
In addition to Ames’ assistance, laboratory technician Rebecca Reiser and Argentina National University biologist Claudia Studdert have participated in the research.
The team’s findings were published in today’s issue of Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.