Cannibalism by Sporulating Bacteria

作者：José Eduardo González‐Pastor, Errett C. Hobbs, Richard M. Losick · 发表于：Science · 年份：2003 · DOI：10.1126/science.1086462 · 被引用次数：598 · 研究领域：Bacterial Genetics and Biotechnology、Bacteriophages and microbial interactions、Bacterial biofilms and quorum sensing

Spore formation by the bacterium Bacillus subtilis is an elaborate developmental process that is triggered by nutrient limitation. Here we report that cells that have entered the pathway to sporulate produce and export a killing factor and a signaling protein that act cooperatively to block sister cells from sporulating and to cause them to lyse. The sporulating cells feed on the nutrients thereby released, which allows them to keep growing rather than to complete morphogenesis. We propose that sporulation is a stress-response pathway of last resort and that B. subtilis delays a commitment to spore formation by cannibalizing its siblings.