Contrary to what we generally tend to assume, lonely microbes may be more dangerous as they are more likely to mutate, resulting in higher rates of antibiotic resistance, a study has found.
More bacteria resulted in fewer mutations.
"We discovered that the rate at which E. coli (some of who can cause diarrhoea) mutates depends upon how many 'friends' it has around. It seems that more lonely organisms are more likely to mutate," said Chris Knight from University of Manchester.
This change of the mutation rate is controlled by a form of social communication known as quorum sensing - this is the way bacteria communicate to let each other know how much of a crowd there is.
This involves the release of signalling molecules by bacteria when in a dense population to help the organisms understand their surrounding environment and coordinate behaviour to improve their defence mechanisms and adapt to the availability of nutrients.
The rate of mutation was found to be dependent on the gene luxS which is known to be involved in quorum sensing in a wide range of bacteria.
The study appeared in the journal Nature Communications.