Science: Bacteria store memories and transmit them between generations – Publimetro México

Madrid, 22 years old (European Press)

This discovery, made by researchers at the University of Texas at Austin, relates to a common chemical element that bacterial cells can use to form these memories and transmit them to their offspring over subsequent generations.

The research, published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS), found that E. coli bacteria use iron levels as a way to store information about different behaviors that can then be activated in response to specific stimuli.

Scientists have previously observed that bacteria that have prior experience with swarming (moving on a surface as a group using flagella) improve subsequent swarming performance. The research team set out to find out why. Bacteria don’t have neurons, synapses, or a nervous system, so memories aren’t like blowing out the candles at a children’s birthday party. It is more like information stored on a computer.

“Bacteria don’t have brains, but they can gather information from their environment, and if they encounter that environment repeatedly, they can store that information and quickly access it later for their own benefit,” said Souvik Bhattacharya, author of the study, in this regard. Bayan is Director and Fellow Scientist in the Department of Molecular Biosciences.

It all comes down to iron, one of the most abundant elements on Earth. Single and floating bacteria contain different levels of iron. The scientists noticed that bacterial cells with low levels of iron were better at clustering. In contrast, bacteria that formed biofilms, which are dense, sticky layers of bacteria on solid surfaces, contained high levels of iron in their cells. The antibiotic-tolerant bacteria also had balanced iron levels. These iron memories last for at least four generations and disappear in the seventh generation.

“Before there was oxygen in Earth’s atmosphere, early cellular life used iron in many cellular processes. Iron is not only essential in the origin of life on Earth, but also in the evolution of life,” Bhattacharya said. “It makes sense for cells to use it this way.”

The researchers believe that when iron levels are low, bacterial memories are activated to form a fast-moving migratory swarm in search of iron in the environment. When iron levels are high, memories indicate that this environment is a good place to survive and form biofilm.

“Iron levels are definitely a target for therapeutics because iron is an important factor in virulence,” Bhattacharya said. “Ultimately, the more we know about the behavior of bacteria, the easier it will be to combat them.”