title: Production of sound waves by bacterial cells and the response of bacterial cells to sound.
abstract: Bacterial cells enhance the proliferation of neighboring cells under stress conditions by emitting a physical signal. Continuous single sine sound waves produced by a speaker at frequencies of 6-10, 18-22, and 28-38 kHz promoted colony formation by Bacillus carboniphilus under non-permissive stress conditions of high KCl concentration and high temperature. Furthermore, sound waves emitted from cells of Bacillus subtilis at frequencies between 8 and 43 kHz with broad peaks at approximately 8.5, 19, 29, and 37 kHz were detected using a sensitive microphone system. The similarity between the frequency of the sound produced by B. subtilis and the frequencies that induced a response in B. carboniphilus and the previously observed growth-promoting effect of B. subtilis cells upon B. carboniphilus through iron barriers, suggest that the detected sound waves function as a growth-regulatory signal between cells.
authors.affiliation: Department of Biological Science and Technology, Department of Information and Communication Technology, Tokai University, Numazu 410-0321, Japan.
authors.forename: Michio
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Matsuhashi
authors.forename: Alla N. L.
authors.initials: AN
authors.lastname: Pankrushina
authors.forename: Satoshi
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Takeuchi
authors.forename: Hideyuki
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Ohshima
authors.forename: Housaku
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Miyoi
authors.forename: Katsura
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Endoh
authors.forename: Ken
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Murayama
authors.forename: Hiroshi
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Watanabe
authors.forename: Shigeo
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Endo
authors.forename: Mikio
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Tobi
authors.forename: Yoshihiro
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Mano
authors.forename: Masao
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Hyodo
authors.forename: Torakichi
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Kobayashi
authors.forename: Tomohiko
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Kaneko
authors.forename: Sugio
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Otani
authors.forename: Susumu
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Yoshimura
authors.forename: Akira
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Harata
authors.forename: Tsuguo
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Sawada