Journal
SCIENCE ADVANCES
Volume 7, Issue 43, Pages -Publisher
AMER ASSOC ADVANCEMENT SCIENCE
DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.abi5878
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Funding
- JSPS KAKENHI [19KK0180, 17J10331, 17H00853, 21H04999, 26707020, 21K03855]
- JSPS Core-to-Core Program, A. Advanced Research Networks
- Kurita Water and Environment Foundation [20E028]
- NIBB Collaborative Research Program [20-501]
- Human Frontier Science Program [LT000013/2019-C]
- Grants-in-Aid for Scientific Research [21H04999, 17J10331, 26707020, 19KK0180, 21K03855] Funding Source: KAKEN
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Single-celled microorganism Tetrahymena responds autonomously to shear flow through rheotaxis by utilizing cilia-stalling mechanics, enabling it to survive in harsh environments effectively.
To survive in harsh environments, single-celled microorganisms autonomously respond to external stimuli, such as light, heat, and flow. Here, we elucidate the flow response of Tetrahymena, a well-known single-celled freshwater microorganism. Tetrahymena moves upstream against an external flow via a behavior called rheotaxis. While micrometer-sized particles are swept away downstream in a viscous flow, what dynamics underlie the rheotaxis of the ciliate? Our experiments reveal that Tetrahymena slides along walls during upstream movement, which indicates that the cells receive rotational torque from shear flow to control cell orientation. To evaluate the effects of the shear torque and propelling speed, we perform a numerical simulation with a hydrodynamic model swimmer adopting cilia dynamics in a shear flow. The swimmer orientations converge to an upstream alignment, and the swimmer slides upstream along a boundary wall. The results suggest that Tetrahymena automatically responds to shear flow by performing rheotaxis using cilia-stalling mechanics.
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