Nanomotion of bacteria to determine metabolic profile

Abstract

In addition to their visible motion such as swimming (e.g., with the help of flagella), bacteria can also exhibit nanomotion that is detectable only with highly sensitive instruments, and this study shows that it is possible to detect bacterial nanomotion using an AFM detection system. The results show that the nanomotion characteristics depend on the bacterial strain, and that nanomotion can be used to sense the metabolic activity of bacteria because the oscillations are sensitive to the food preferences of the bacteria and the type of surrounding medium.