Love Thy Neighbor: Sharing and Cooperativity in the Gut Microbiota

To persist in the competitive gastrointestinal ecosystem, microbes often enforce selfish strategies that limit resource loss to neighboring bacteria. In contrast, a recent study in Nature by Rakoff-Nahoum et al. (2016) reveals that one commensal bacterium releases nutrients to benefit another species, which reciprocally provides growth-promoting factors to the producer. To persist in the competitive gastrointestinal ecosystem, microbes often enforce selfish strategies that limit resource loss to neighboring bacteria. In contrast, a recent study in Nature by Rakoff-Nahoum et al. (2016) reveals that one commensal bacterium releases nutrients to benefit another species, which reciprocally provides growth-promoting factors to the producer.