Extended Data Fig. 10: Validation of biofilm responses after nutrient removal.
From: Community-specific cell death sustains bacterial expansion under phosphorus starvation
a, Confocal images of E. coli biofilms cultivated in flow cell. To help visualize biomass, we constitutively expressed the fluorescent protein sfGFP (green) in the bacteria. Cell death is indicated by PI fluorescence (red). We first cultured the biofilms in normal medium for ~20 h, then switched to medium without phosphate, glucose, or ammonium, respectively. The snapshots shown here were taken right before and 24 h after nutrient removal, respectively (except for the control group). All the snapshots are displayed using the same contrast settings. b-c, Temporal profiles of total PI fluorescence in the biofilm and average biofilm thickness before and after nutrient removal. d, Snapshots of DCFH-DA fluorescence in the biofilm 24 h after nutrient removal. The images are displayed using the same contrast setting as in Fig. 4a. All the results are representative of 3 biological replicates. Scale bar, 100 μm.
