Howard Stone

Dec 10, 2023 | biorxiv.org | Ashwin Ramachandran |Howard Stone |Zemer Gitai

AbstractPlanktonic (free-floating) cells are typically assumed to be oblivious to any flow that carries them. Here we discover that planktonic bacteria can sense flow to induce gene expression changes that are beneficial in flow. Specifically, planktonic P. aeruginosa induce shear-rate-dependent genes that promote growth in low oxygen environments. Untangling this mechanism revealed that in flow, motile P.

Oct 18, 2023 | nature.com | Howard Stone

NEWS AND VIEWS 18 October 2023 Proteins can condense to form membraneless organelles, which act as vessels for biochemical reactions in cells. An investigation shows that protein condensation is also a cellular mechanism for controlling water availability. Cells maintain an internal pool of water that is essential for biological processes.