A new paper on ageing in bacteria by former (Ulrich K. Steiner, Ming Ni, Peipei Chen, Xiaohu Song) and current (François Taddei, Ariel B. Lindner) researchers from CRI. It used experimental data and mathematical approaches to show that the pattern of ageing in bacteria (specifically E. coli) can be explained by two stochastic processes.
The full text of the study is available here
Despite advances in ageing research, a multitude of ageing models, and empirical evidence for diverse senescence patterns, understanding of the biological processes that shape senescence is lacking. This work shows that senescence of an isogenic Escherichia coli bacterial population results from two stochastic processes. The first process is a random deterioration process within the cell, such as generated by random accumulation of damage. The second process relates to the stochastic asymmetric transmission at cell fission of an unknown factor that influences mortality. The work calls for exploration of similar stochastic influences that shape ageing patterns beyond simple organisms.
