Bacteria navigate on surfaces using a ’sense of touch’

Phase contrast micrograph of Pseudomonas aeruginosacells migrating on a surface by twitching motility. Extracellular filaments known as type IV pili extend and retract to power cellular movement. At the leading edge of a migratingcolony, cells form persistent rafts that facilitate expansion. Persat Lab / EPFL - Researchers have characterized a mechanism that allows bacteria to direct their movement in response to the mechanical properties of the surfaces the microbes move on - a finding that could help fight certain pathogens. Many disease-causing bacteria such as Pseudomonasaeruginosa crawl on surfaces through a walk-like motility known as "twitching". Nanometers-wide filaments called type IV pili are known to power twitching, but scientists ignore which sensory signals coordinate the microbes' movements. Now, researchers have found that Pseudomonas bacteria use a mechanism similar to our sense of touch to navigate on surfaces.