Observing bacteria through the lens of social evolution.
Explaining the evolution of cooperative behavior is a long-standing problem for which much theory has been developed. A recent paper in BMC Biology tests central elements of this theory by manipulating a simple bacterial experimental system. This approach is useful for assessing the principles of social evolution, but we argue that more effort must be invested in the inverse problem: using social evolution theory to understand the lives of bacteria.
Nadell
Carey D
CD
Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ 08544, USA.
Bassler
Bonnie L
BL
Levin
Simon A
SA
D001419:Bacteria / Q000235:genetics*; D018441:Biofilms; D005075:Biological Evolution; D008954:Models, Biological; D053038:Quorum Sensing