Silent Treatment

摘要

Bacteria may be primitive, but they're far from simple. They lead complex lives and communicate through a chemical language that allows them to coordinate their actions, a process known as quorum sensing. Using this chemical communication system, bacteria can sense when they have reached a critical number, or quorum. Then they act en masse. Some might begin producing light, others a deadly toxin. This capability is part of what makes bacteria so terrifying: A single cell can't manufacture enough toxins to make us sick, but when millions simultaneously churn out noxious molecules, the results can be lethal.