title: The mechanical world of bacteria.
abstract: In the wild, bacteria are predominantly associated with surfaces as opposed to existing as free-swimming, isolated organisms. They are thus subject to surface-specific mechanics, including hydrodynamic forces, adhesive forces, the rheology of their surroundings, and transport rules that define their encounters with nutrients and signaling molecules. Here, we highlight the effects of mechanics on bacterial behaviors on surfaces at multiple length scales, from single bacteria to the development of multicellular bacterial communities such as biofilms.
authors.affiliation: Department of Molecular Biology, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ 08544, USA.
authors.forename: Alexandre
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Persat
authors.affiliation: Department of Molecular Biology, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ 08544, USA; Max Planck Institute for Terrestrial Microbiology, 35043 Marburg, Germany.
authors.forename: Carey D
authors.initials: CD
authors.lastname: Nadell
authors.affiliation: Department of Chemistry, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ 08544, USA.
authors.forename: Minyoung Kevin
authors.initials: MK
authors.lastname: Kim
authors.affiliation: Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ 08544, USA.
authors.forename: Francois
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Ingremeau
authors.affiliation: Department of Molecular Biology, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ 08544, USA.
authors.forename: Albert
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Siryaporn
authors.affiliation: Max Planck Institute for Terrestrial Microbiology, 35043 Marburg, Germany.
authors.forename: Knut
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Drescher
authors.affiliation: Lewis Sigler Institute, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ 08544, USA.
authors.forename: Ned S
authors.initials: NS
authors.lastname: Wingreen
authors.affiliation: Department of Molecular Biology, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ 08544, USA; Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Chevy Chase, MD 20815, USA.
authors.forename: Bonnie L
authors.initials: BL
authors.lastname: Bassler
authors.affiliation: Department of Molecular Biology, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ 08544, USA. Electronic address: zgitai@princeton.edu.
authors.forename: Zemer
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Gitai
authors.affiliation: Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ 08544, USA. Electronic address: hastone@princeton.edu.
authors.forename: Howard A
authors.initials: HA
authors.lastname: Stone
mesh_terms: D001422:Bacterial Adhesion; D018441:Biofilms; D001692:Biological Transport; D001696:Biomechanical Phenomena; D004926:Escherichia coli / Q000166:cytology / Q000502:physiology*; D008124:Locomotion; D011550:Pseudomonas aeruginosa / Q000166:cytology / Q000502:physiology*