Chapter 24 : Deciphering the Language of Diplomacy

Abstract:

This chapter talks about deciphering the language of diplomacy give and take in the study of the squid-vibrio symbiosis. The colonization of epithelia by microbes is the most common and ancient form of animal symbiosis. Throughout the evolutionary history of animals, from early beginnings through the invasion of the land, and into the current biosphere, the most common type of animal-microbe association has been the colonization of the outer surfaces of animal epithelia by populations of one or more microbial species. For the last 20+ years, biologists have been studying the processes by which bacteria colonize animal epithelial surfaces, using the model association between the Hawaiian bobtail squid, Euprymna scolopes, and the marine bioluminescent bacterium Vibrio fischeri. The study of this association evolved as "symbioses" between biologists from two very different fields, microbiology and animal biology. Distinct species have evolved strange new abilities that allow them to inhabit even the most forbidding of environments. Critical to the development of this research over the past 20 years has been the willingness of our students and collaborators to join us in this adventure. These important tools have allowed us to begin deciphering the molecular language of symbiosis between bacteria and animal epithelia.