Related papers: Aerotaxis in the Closest Relatives of Animals
We illuminate the nature of the three-dimensional random walks of microorganisms composed of individual organisms adhered together. Such $aggregate~random~walkers$ are typified by choanoflagellates, eukaryotes that are the closest living…
Efficient uptake of nutrients from the environment is an important component in the fitness of all microorganisms, and its dependence on size may reveal clues to the origins of evolutionary transitions to multicellularity. Because potential…
The recent discovery of the striking sheet-like multicellular choanoflagellate species $Choanoeca~flexa$ that dynamically interconverts between two hemispherical forms of opposite orientation raises fundamental questions in cell and…
Aerotaxis is the particular form of chemotaxis in which oxygen plays the role of both the attractant and the repellent. Aerotaxis occurs without methylation adaptation, and it leads to fast and complete aggregation toward the most favorable…
Protozoan colonies undergo stimulus driven motion for purposes such as nutrient acquisition. Colonial response to a stimulus is mediated through a mechanical aggregation of the response properties of members of the colony. We develop and…
We study the stochastic hydrodynamics of colonies of flagellated swimming cells, typified by multicellular choanoflagellates, which can form both rosette and chainlike shapes. The objective is to link cell-scale dynamics to colony-scale…
Green algae of the $Volvocine$ lineage, spanning from unicellular $Chlamydomonas$ to vastly larger $Volvox$, are models for the study of the evolution of multicellularity, flagellar dynamics, and developmental processes. Phototactic…
We introduce a generic, purely mechanical model for environment sensitive motion of mammalian cells that is applicable to chemotaxis, haptotaxis, and durotaxis as modes of motility. It is able to theoretically explain all relevant…
Aerotaxis is the ability of motile cells to navigate toward oxygen. A key question is the dependence of the aerotactic velocity with the local oxygen concentration c. Here we combine simultaneous bacteria tracking and local oxygen…
The rise of multicellularity in the early evolution of life represents a major challenge for evolutionary biology. Guidance for finding answers has emerged from disparate fields, from phylogenetics to modelling and synthetic biology, but…
As the closest living relatives of animals, choanoflagellates exhibit remarkable diversity. Even their microvilli collar, used to filter and capture food, varies significantly among species. This diversity suggests either strong…
Phototaxis is an important reaction to light displayed by a wide range of motile microorganisms. Flagellated eukaryotic microalgae in particular, like the model organism Chlamydomonas reinhardtii, steer either towards or away from light by…
The classical macroscopic chemotaxis equations have previously been derived from an individual-based description of the tactic response of cells that use a "run-and-tumble" strategy in response to environmental cues. Here we derive…
Many animals in their natural habitat exhibit collective motion and form complex patterns to tackle environmental difficulties. Several physical and biological factors, such as animal motility, population densities, and chemical cues, play…
Chemotaxis, the directional locomotion of cells towards a source of a chemical gradient, is an integral part of many biological processes - for example, bacteria motion, single-cell or multicellular organisms development, immune response,…
The ability to navigate in complex, inhomogeneous environments is fundamental to survival at all length scales, giving rise to the rapid development of various subfields in bio-locomotion such as the well established concept of chemotaxis.…
Cytasters have been underestimated in terms of their potential relevance to embryonic development and evolution. From the perspective discussed herein, structures such as the multiciliated cells of comb rows and balancers supporting…
We compare chemotaxis, the migration of cells and higher animals in reaction to a chemical stimulus, and similar phenomena originating within gases from temperature differences. Then we explain two easy mathematical models for handling…
Understanding how microorganisms navigate in complex environments is a central question in active matter and biological physics. Phototaxis - the ability to use light as a navigation cue - is a widespread strategy in motile microalgae to…
Phototaxis is one of the most fundamental stimulus-response behaviors in biology wherein motile micro-organisms sense light gradients to swim towards the light source. Apart from single cell survival and growth, it plays a major role at the…