The research objective of this award is to use a combination of optical microscopy, computational and micromanipulation tools to investigate the mechanics of bacterial cell wall growth. This investigation will add significantly to the understanding of the interplay between physics and chemistry at the bacterial cell level and enhance our ability to manipulate cell structure and function by revealing principles of bacterial shape and mechanics. This research is at the interface of physics, chemistry, biology, and engineering, thereby spanning a diverse and broad range of scientific disciplines. The work will provide new avenues into biomechano-chemistry and may also lead to new paradigms in nano-engineering. The educational plan will train students to develop quantitative understandings of the role of solid mechanics and chemical kinetics in microbial biology. In addition, this work will help foster the partnership between the awardee's institution and a non-PhD-focused physics program to provide underrepresented minorities with summer research experience and act as a bridge to graduate school.
This research project will develop and test a multiscale model for bacterial growth and shape maintenance. The mechanisms underlying this process remain enigmatic, even though many of the molecular players are now known. Bacterial shape is considered to be important for the function of the bacteria. Therefore, this project will explore the biophysics of an interesting material while also being informative on the mechanisms that bacteria use to create and maintain their shapes. Furthermore, this research will develop a multi-scale approach for determining how molecular-level interactions produce bulk material properties. Studies conducted under this award will use atomic force microscopy and optical trapping techniques to apply prescribed forces to growing bacteria. The consequences on the shape and growth rate will then be compared to the multi-scale computational model that will be developed to determine how mechanical forces affect the biochemistry of cell wall synthesis.
