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SIGNIFICANT GENETIC COMMITMENT. "A significant portion of a bacterial genome (4%–10%) and proteome (20% or more) can be influenced by quorum signaling, which suggests that quorum sensing is a mechanism used by pathogenic bacteria not only to modulate virulence factor production but also to adapt to the metabolic demands of living in communities." http://cid.oxfordjournals.org/content/47/8/1070.long View in LinkedIn

SIGNAL ATTRITION. "The term quorum sensing does not, however, adequately describe all situations where bacteria employ diffusible chemical signals. The size of the quorum, for example, is not fixed but will vary according to the relative rates of production and loss of signal molecule, i.e. it is dependent on the prevailing local environmental conditions." http://rstb.royalsocietypublishing.org/content/362/1483/1119 View in LinkedIn

GAMING THE COMMON GOOD. "The cooperative population is exposed to exploitation by cheaters, i.e., mutants who contribute less or nil to the effort but fully enjoy the benefits of cooperation. The communication system is also vulnerable to a different type of cheaters (“Liars”) who may produce the QS signal but not the exoproduct, thus ruining the reliability of the signal. https://lnkd.in/dT8bNGS View in LinkedIn

COMMON GOOD ACTIONS. "Bacterial cooperation may take the form of the excretion of “public goods”: exoproducts such as virulence factors, exoenzymes or components of the matrix in biofilms, to yield significant benefit for individuals joining in the common effort of producing them." https://lnkd.in/dT8bNGS View in LinkedIn

QUORUM SIGNALING ACROSS KINGDOMS. "QS also crosses the prokaryotic–eukaryotic boundary in that QS signal molecules influence the behaviour of eukaryotic organisms in both the plant and mammalian worlds such that QS signal molecules may directly facilitate bacterial survival by promoting an advantageous lifestyle within a given environmental niche.” http://mic.sgmjournals.org/content/153/12/3923.full View in LinkedIn

QUORUM SENSING ACROSS SPECIES. “Eukaryotes and prokaryotes have evolved diverse signalling mechanisms to detect and respond to each other. Although bacterial QS signal molecules have largely been considered as effectors of prokaryotic gene expression, they are bioactive molecules which can modify the behaviour of fungal, plant and animal cells.” https://lnkd.in/dB3MYFP View in LinkedIn

CROSS-SPECIES LANGUAGE. “Quorum sensing also crosses the prokaryotic–eukaryotic boundary since quorum sensing-dependent signalling can be exploited or inactivated by both plants and mammals.” http://rstb.royalsocietypublishing.org/content/362/1483/1119 View in LinkedIn

JUICY TAX REVENUES FROM BIG TOBACCO. "Tobacco has been taxed by state governments in the United States for decades. The cumulative revenue of US tobacco taxation exceeded $32 billion in 2010, creating a major source of income for government." http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tobacco_politics View in LinkedIn

COLLECTIVE ACTION. “Quorum sensing enables a bacterial population to mount a co-operative response that improves access to nutrients or specific environmental niches, promotes collective defense against other competitor prokaryotes or eukaryotic defense mechanisms and facilitates survival through differentiation into morphological forms better able to combat environmental threats.” http://rstb.royalsocietypublishing.org/content/362/1483/1119 View in LinkedIn

THE ECONOMIC BURDEN TRUMPS ALL. "The costs of treating tobacco-related illnesses and the resulting loss of productivity are leading economic arguments for tobacco control policies." https://lnkd.in/dKtA3ku View in LinkedIn