Name: How bacteria "talk"
Uploaded: 2009-04-08T01:00:00Z
Duration: 17 min 54 s
Description: Bonnie Bassler discovered that bacteria "talk" to each other, using a chemical language that lets them coordinate defense and mount attacks. The find has stunning implications for medicine, industry -- and our understanding of ourselves.

Bonnie Bassler discovered that bacteria "talk" to each other, using a chemical language that lets them coordinate defense and mount attacks. The find has stunning implications for medicine, industry -- and our understanding of ourselves.

Bonnie Bassler: How bacteria "talk"

How bacteria "talk"

Bacteria communicate via chemicals, coordinating activities like defense and attacks, transforming our view of microorganisms.

Discovering that bacteria use 'quorum sensing' to count their numbers and act collectively offers new antibiotic strategies.

Bacteria are multilingual, using chemical languages for both intraspecies and interspecies communication, impacting ecosystems.