title: Cooperation and competition shape ecological resistance during periodic spatial disturbance of engineered bacteria.
abstract: Cooperation is fundamental to the survival of many bacterial species. Previous studies have shown that spatial structure can both promote and suppress cooperation. Most environments where bacteria are found are periodically disturbed, which can affect the spatial structure of the population. Despite the important role that spatial disturbances play in maintaining ecological relationships, it remains unclear as to how periodic spatial disturbances affect bacteria dependent on cooperation for survival. Here, we use bacteria engineered with a strong Allee effect to investigate how the frequency of periodic spatial disturbances affects cooperation. We show that at intermediate frequencies of spatial disturbance, the ability of the bacterial population to cooperate is perturbed. A mathematical model demonstrates that periodic spatial disturbance leads to a tradeoff between accessing an autoinducer and accessing nutrients, which determines the ability of the bacteria to cooperate. Based on this relationship, we alter the ability of the bacteria to access an autoinducer. We show that increased access to an autoinducer can enhance cooperation, but can also reduce ecological resistance, defined as the ability of a population to resist changes due to disturbance. Our results may have implications in maintaining stability of microbial communities and in the treatment of infectious diseases.
authors.affiliation: Department of Biological Sciences, Halmos College of Natural Sciences and Oceanography, Nova Southeastern University, 3301 College Ave, Fort Lauderdale, Florida, 33314, USA.|Guy Harvey Oceanographic Center, Nova Southeastern University, 8000 North Ocean Dr, Dania Beach, Florida, 33004, USA.
authors.forename: Cortney E
authors.initials: CE
authors.lastname: Wilson
authors.affiliation: Department of Biomedical Engineering, Duke University, 101 Science Drive, Durham, North Carolina, USA.
authors.forename: Allison J
authors.initials: AJ
authors.lastname: Lopatkin
authors.affiliation: Clinical Systems Biology Group, Institute for Neuro-Immune Medicine, Nova Southeastern University, 3301 College Ave, Fort Lauderdale, Florida, 33314, USA.|Department of Psychology & Neuroscience, College of Psychology, Nova Southeastern University, 3301 College Ave, Fort Lauderdale, Florida, 33314, USA.|Department of Computer Science, College of Engineering and Computing, Nova Southeastern University, 3301 College Ave, Fort Lauderdale, Florida, 33314, USA.|Department of Clinical Immunology, College of Osteopathic Medicine, Nova Southeastern University, 3301 College Ave, Fort Lauderdale, Florida, 33314, USA.
authors.forename: Travis J A
authors.initials: TJ
authors.lastname: Craddock
authors.affiliation: Department of Ecology, Evolution, and Behavior, University of Minnesota, 100 Ecology, 1987 Upper Buford Circle, St. Paul, Minnesota, 55108, USA.
authors.forename: William W
authors.initials: WW
authors.lastname: Driscoll
authors.affiliation: Department of Biological Sciences, Halmos College of Natural Sciences and Oceanography, Nova Southeastern University, 3301 College Ave, Fort Lauderdale, Florida, 33314, USA.
authors.forename: Omar Tonsi
authors.initials: OT
authors.lastname: Eldakar
authors.affiliation: Department of Biological Sciences, Halmos College of Natural Sciences and Oceanography, Nova Southeastern University, 3301 College Ave, Fort Lauderdale, Florida, 33314, USA.|Guy Harvey Oceanographic Center, Nova Southeastern University, 8000 North Ocean Dr, Dania Beach, Florida, 33004, USA.
authors.forename: Jose V
authors.initials: JV
authors.lastname: Lopez
authors.affiliation: Department of Biological Sciences, Halmos College of Natural Sciences and Oceanography, Nova Southeastern University, 3301 College Ave, Fort Lauderdale, Florida, 33314, USA. rsmith@nova.edu.
authors.forename: Robert P
authors.initials: RP
authors.lastname: Smith
mesh_terms: D001419:Bacteria / Q000254:growth & development* / Q000378:metabolism*; D004783:Environmental Microbiology; D059013:Microbial Consortia; D056265:Microbial Interactions; D008962:Models, Theoretical; D053038:Quorum Sensing; D062206:Spatial Analysis