Quorum sensing in Vibrio controls carbon metabolism to optimize growth in changing environmental conditions

Bacteria sense population density via the cell-cell communication system called quorum sensing (QS). The evolution of QS and its maintenance or loss in mixed bacterial communities is highly relevant to understanding how cell-cell signaling impacts bacterial fitness and competition, particularly under varying environmental conditions such as nutrient availability. We uncovered a phenomenon in which Vibrio cells grown in minimal medium optimize expression of the methionine and tetrahydrofolate (THF) synthesis genes via QS. Strains that are genetically "locked" at high cell density grow slowly in minimal glucose media and suppressor mutants accumulate via inactivating mutations in metF (methylenetetrahydrofolate reductase) and luxR (the master QS transcriptional regulator). In mixed cultures, QS mutant strains initially coexist with wild-type, but as glucose is depleted, wild-type outcompetes the QS mutants. Thus, QS regulation of methionine/THF synthesis is a fitness benefit that links nutrient availability and cell density, preventing accumulation of QS-defective mutants.