Extreme sibling rivalry
When conditions get crowded, a type of bacteria called
Paenibacillus dendritiformis
takes things to an extreme, making a poison to kill encroaching siblings. The poison kills rivals where two groups of bacteria meet. A little back from the edge of the colony the chemical transforms the hot dog–shaped bacteria into little balls impervious to the poison, scientists from the University of Texas at Austin report online May 31 in
mBio
.
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