An organism is able to move as a group of cells on a surface

An organism is able to move as a group of cells on a surface, but not when cells are isolated. A mutant of that organism has greatly reduced surface motility on surfaces. The wild type cells and mutant have flagella.

a)What type of surface motility is consistent with the data above?

b)The mutation occured in a gene in the synthesis pathway for the lipopeptide surfactin. When some surfactants are pipetted onto mutated colonies their surface motility is restored to wild type levels. Why?

Solution

1. Swarming surface motility is commonly found in Bacillus subtilis.

2. It came to know that lipopeptide surfactin and extra cellular protease played major role in smarming motility.

3. When some surfactants are pipetted onto mutaed colonies their surface motility is restored to wild type swarming motility.

4. Swarming motility depends on lipopeptide surfactin and proteinase K but not on flagella.

5. Gene responsible for production of surfactin and proteinase k are translocated from wild type strains to mutated strains.

6. Because of this translocation both wild strains and mutated strains were able to form surface colonization and restored their wild type swarming surface motility.