C. Kost

Dispersal between interconnected patches can reduce the total population size

The paper shows that increased dispersal between habitat patches reduces total population size, suggesting conservation corridors may harm some species.

Predation increases prey fitness via transgenerational priming

This study shows predation primes E. coli to enhance defensive clustering and fitness across generations.

Synergistic coevolution accelerates genome evolution

This study shows that synergistic coevolution between mutualistic bacteria increases molecular evolution rates compared to independent growth.

Obligate mutualistic cooperation limits evolvability

This study shows that obligate mutualistic cooperation in E. coli reduces evolvability, as interdependent strains are less able to adapt to environmental stress and often regain metabolic autonomy.

Obligate cross-feeding expands the metabolic niche of bacteria

This study shows that obligate cross-feeding between bacterial species expands their collective metabolic niche space more than it contracts it, especially between distantly related specialists.

Metabolic dissimilarity determines the establishment of cross-feeding interactions in bacteria

The study shows that metabolic dissimilarity between bacterial strains promotes cross-feeding interactions, as demonstrated through cocultivation experiments and in-silico analysis of gut microbiota.

Cooperation increases robustness to ecological disturbance in microbial cross-feeding networks

The paper uses a population dynamics model to show that ecological disturbance favors cooperative cross-feeding in microbial networks, increasing their robustness.

Selective advantages favour high genomic AT-contents in intracellular elements

The paper shows that AT-rich intracellular genetic elements are selectively favored in host cells, leading to higher AT-content in these elements.

Nanotube-mediated cross-feeding couples the metabolism of interacting bacterial cells

The paper shows that auxotrophic E. coli cells increase amino acid production when co-cultured with prototrophic donors via nanotubes, due to cytoplasmic amino acid depletion delaying feedback inhibition.

Impaired competence in flagellar mutants of Bacillus subtilis is connected to the regulatory network governed by DegU

This study shows that flagellar mutants of Bacillus subtilis have reduced competence due to decreased comK expression, linked to increased phosphorylated DegU.