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Inhibitory interactions promote frequent bistability among competing bacteria

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  • Erik S. Wright

    (Wisconsin Institute for Discovery, University of Wisconsin-Madison, 330 N. Orchard Street, Madison, Wisconsin 53715, USA)

  • Kalin H. Vetsigian

    (Wisconsin Institute for Discovery, University of Wisconsin-Madison, 330 N. Orchard Street, Madison, Wisconsin 53715, USA)

Abstract

It is largely unknown how the process of microbial community assembly is affected by the order of species arrival, initial species abundances and interactions between species. A minimal way of capturing competitive abilities in a frequency-dependent manner is with an invasibility network specifying whether a species at low abundance can increase in frequency in an environment dominated by another species. Here, using a panel of prolific small-molecule producers and a habitat with feast-and-famine cycles, we show that the most abundant strain can often exclude other strains—resulting in bistability between pairs of strains. Instead of a single winner, the empirically determined invasibility network is ruled by multiple strains that cannot invade each other, and does not contain loops of cyclic dominance. Antibiotic inhibition contributes to bistability by helping producers resist invasions while at high abundance and by reducing producers’ ability to invade when at low abundance.

Suggested Citation

  • Erik S. Wright & Kalin H. Vetsigian, 2016. "Inhibitory interactions promote frequent bistability among competing bacteria," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 7(1), pages 1-7, September.
    • Handle: RePEc:nat:natcom:v:7:y:2016:i:1:d:10.1038_ncomms11274
    DOI: 10.1038/ncomms11274
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    Cited by:

    1. William Lopes & Daniel R. Amor & Jeff Gore, 2024. "Cooperative growth in microbial communities is a driver of multistability," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 15(1), pages 1-10, December.
    2. Anna Y. Alekseeva & Anneloes E. Groenenboom & Eddy J. Smid & Sijmen E. Schoustra, 2021. "Eco-Evolutionary Dynamics in Microbial Communities from Spontaneous Fermented Foods," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(19), pages 1-19, September.
    3. Gina Paola Rodriguez-Castaño & Federico E Rey & Alejandro Caro-Quintero & Alejandro Acosta-González, 2020. "Gut-derived Flavonifractor species variants are differentially enriched during in vitro incubation with quercetin," PLOS ONE, Public Library of Science, vol. 15(12), pages 1-21, December.

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