Quorum sensing

Abstract

Bacteria have an exquisite ability to sense and adapt to a constantly fluctuating environment. They have evolved the capacity to detect a variety of temporal and spatial cues, and in response to such stimuli, bacteria initiate signal transduction cascades that culminate in changes in gene expression. The ability to rapidly alter gene expression, and consequently behavior, in response to a dynamic environment presumably gives bacteria the plasticity to survive in rich, neutral, and hostile situations.