Secret Social Lives Of Bacteria Bonnie Bassler Analysis

In the Ted Talk “Secret Social Lives of Bacteria” by Bonnie Bassler, she talk about bacteria and how they operate together to do things. She starts by stating bacteria is the oldest living component on earth, they have been here for billions of years. Bacteria are single celled microscopic organisms with one strand of DNA. Their life includes consuming nutrients from their environment, growing, and then dividing into two cells. Bacteria are continuously growing and dividing.
Bassler continues her discussion of bacteria by classifying humans as ninty to ninety nine percent bacteria. Humans have ten trillion bacteria cells in us or on us at any moment in time. Bacteria creates an invisible layer around our body that keeps harmful threats out so we can stay healthy. They also digest our food, make our vitamins, and educate our immune system. Bacteria is mostly known for all the bad things they do. Bassler asks the question of …show more content…
The bacterial cell has a protein, which is an enzyme that makes that hormone molecule. The cells then grow, releasing that molecule into the environment. The bacteria have a receptor on their cell surface that fits with that molecule it produced. When the molecule increases to a certain amount, it locks down into that receptor and information comes into the cells that tells the cells to turn on this collective behavior of making light.
The importance of the glowing bacteria, is all bacteria use this systems like the Vibrio Fischeri. All Bacteria make chemical words that they recognize, they then turn on group behavior that only works when all the bacteria cells participate simultaneously. There are hundreds of bacteria behaviors that are carried out. The most important one for Humans is virulence. They get into us and grow. They count themselves and recognize when they have the right cell number, the bacteria launch their virulence attack at the same time so they can defeat an enormous