Hide-and-seek: In some landscapes an effective strategy against predatory bacteria
Predators and prey can be found across the tree of life, even among bacteria. Bdellovibrio bacteriovorus is one such bacterial predator, and an efficient killer of the prevalent E. coli bacterium. This bacterial predator enters its prey and devours it from the inside while dividing into four or six progenies. The predator bacteria then burst open their prey and start their hunt for the next. B. bacteriovorus is present in soil, and just like its prey E. coli, it can also be found in our gut. In order to understand how E. coli is able to survive in the presence of such an effective predator in natural environments, scientists from the Kavli Institute of Nanoscience at TU Delft (The Netherlands) together with colleagues from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem (Israel), studied the struggle in different environments. E. coli did not stand a chance in 'open space', but it maintained a...