Choosing Your Neighbors: Scientists See How Microbes Relate in Space
Date: 18.2.2011
Like people in cities, microbes often live in complex communities that contain many different microbial types. Also like us, microbes tend to gravitate to and "hang out" with certain other types in their community, more than with the rest. And sometimes, when opportunities arise, they move to more favorable locations.
But until recently, scientists have not been able to look at a microbial community and distinguish the spatial relationship of more than 2 or 3 kinds of microbes at once.
Now, a microscopy technique developed at the Marine Biological Laboratory (MBL), allows scientists to see the spatial arrangement of up to 28 differently labeled microbes in a single field of view.
Source:
http://www.mbl.edu/news/press_releases/2011_pr_02_15.html
Original Paper:
Valm, A.M., Mark Welch, J.L., Rieken, C.W., Hasegawa, Y., Sogin, M.L., Oldenbourg, R., Dewhirst, F.E., and Borisy, G.G. Systems-level analysis of microbial community organization through combinatorial labeling and spectral imaging. PNAS, Feb. 14, 2011 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1101134108
