The cost-benefit trade-off of peritrichous flagellation in bacteria
María Giralt-Zúñiga, Michael Jahn, Joshua L. Franklin, Kathirvel Alagesan, Florian Kondrot, Eugen Kaganovitch, Lasse Hallenga, Sarya Derado, Kelly T. Hughes, Philipp F. Popp, Emmanuelle Charpentier, Y. Dufour, Marc Erhardt
This study quantifies the cost-benefit trade-off of peritrichous flagellation in Salmonella enterica, showing that increased flagellation reduces growth rate but enhances motility and competitive fitness in structured environments.
bioRxiv · Aug 20, 2026 · PreprintMicrobiology