Some strains of E.coli can self-destruct in the presence of a competitor’s toxins Jezper / Alamy
Some bacteria self-destruct when their colony is attacked by rivals, but the reason was unclear. Now it seems they sacrifice themselves to save their relatives, just as some insects give their lives to defend their colonies.
This kind of sacrifice is rare in nature because it usually contradicts an individual’s evolutionary drive to survive and reproduce. However, many types of bacteria self-destruct when attacked by rival bacteria.
To try to understand why this happens, Elisa Granato and Kevin Foster at the University of…
