Intercellular interactions~in early biofilm formation probed with image analysis and~laser trapping

Inter-bacterial interactions are essential to such fundamental phenomena as motility and biofilm development.~ Many of these interactions are mediated by quorum sensing to coordinate gene expression among groups of cells. Other influences include contact with a common surface and proximity of neighboring cells.~ All such mechanisms depend strongly on the spatial structure of the system.~ We investigate the early stages of biofilm formation.~These cells show striking cooperative behavior: neighbor proximity and number correlate with the post-division~detachment likelihood of daughter cells. To better study the effects of such spatial structure, we develop a platform that uses laser trapping to control bacterial patterning.~ We place bacteria on a surface with micron-lengthscale precision and reproducibility. This platform allows systematic study of the effects of neighbor number, density, and orientation on intercellular interactions.