The physics of flagellar motion of E. coli during chemotaxis

Abstract

Flagellar motion has been an active area of study right from the discovery of bacterial chemotaxis in 1882. During chemotaxis, E. coli moves with the help of helical flagella in an aquatic environment. Helical flagella are rotated in clockwise or counterclockwise direction using reversible flagellar motors situated at the base of each flagellum. The swimming of E. coli is characterized by a low Reynolds number that is unique and time reversible. The random motion of E. coli is influenced by the viscosity of the fluid and the Brownian motion of molecules of fluid, chemoattractants, and chemorepellants. This paper reviews the literature about the physics involved in the propulsion mechanism of E. coli. Starting from the resistive-force theory, various theories on flagellar hydrodynamics are critically reviewed. Expressions for drag force, elastic force and velocity of flagellar elements are derived. By taking the elastic nature of flagella into account, linear and nonlinear equations of motions are derived and their solutions are presented.

Keywords: Bacterial chemotaxis; Equations of flagellar motion; Flagellar hydrodynamics; Low Reynolds number flow.

Fig. 1

The swimming motions of E. coli. a “Run” mode where flagella are bundled due to counterclockwise rotation. b “Tumble” mode causes spinning of the cell body due to clockwise rotation of flagella