This multidisciplinary study led by Nicolas Desprat (biophysicists at ENS Paris) shows that patterns of surface bacterial colonization derive from the asymmetric (polar) distribution of adhesive factors on the bacterial cell envelop.
Asymetric adhesion in rod-shaped bacteria controls microcolony morphogenesis M.-C. Duvernoy, T. Mora, M. Ardre, V. Croquette, D. Bensimon, C. Quilliet, J.-M. Ghigo, M. Balland, C. Beloin, S. Lecuyer, and N. Desprat Nature communications ((2018)9:1120 | DOI: 10.1038/s41467-018-0344