Bacteria can ‘talk’ to each other through chemicals – a system scientists call quorum sensing (QS). In this process, bacteria release signalling molecules that other cells can pick up and ‘hear’ causing changes in their gene expression that can coordinate their activities. This allows them to work together in response to environmental change. QS has been well studied in a handful of medically-relevant species, but it is not well understood in nature, and especially in extreme environments. Scientists think that QS is an old process that evolved on Earth early in the evolution of life, but how early in that evolution is unknown.
In this study, Dr. Prescott and her colleagues are investigating where QS occurs in extreme environments through metagenomic analyses. They are also interested in determining what groups of microbes have genes for QS and look at the evolutionary roots of QS from organisms found in these unique environments that are more similar to ancient Earth and Mars.
