Networks of molecular regulators are often the primary objects of focus in the study of gene
regulation, with the machinery of protein synthesis tacitly relegated to the background …

The metabolic activity of microbial communities plays a primary role in the flow of essential
nutrients throughout the biosphere. Molecular genetics has revealed the metabolic …

Polysaccharide breakdown by bacteria requires the activity of enzymes that degrade
polymers either intra-or extra-cellularly. The latter mechanism generates a localized pool of …

Microbial communities thrive in almost all habitats on earth. Within these communities, cells
interact through the release and uptake of metabolites. These interactions can have …

Facultative multicellular behaviors expand the metabolic capacity and physiological
resilience of bacteria. Despite their ubiquity in nature, we lack an understanding of how …

Members of microbial communities interact via a plethora of mechanisms, including
resource competition, cross-feeding, and pH modulation. However, the relative contributions …

Bacteria that assemble in phycospheres surrounding living phytoplankton cells metabolize a
substantial proportion of ocean primary productivity. Yet the type and extent of interactions …

Microbial communities perform essential ecosystem functions such as the remineralization
of organic carbon that exists as biopolymers. The first step in mineralization is performed by …

Predicting whether microbial invaders will colonize an environment is critical for managing
natural and engineered ecosystems, and controlling infectious disease. Invaders often face …

Cell division without cell separation produces multicellular clusters in budding yeast. Two
fundamental characteristics of these clusters are their size (the number of cells per cluster) …