Monitoring of Dynamic Microbiological Processes Using Real-Time Flow Cytometry

Abstract

<div><p>We describe a straightforward approach to continuously monitor a variety of highly dynamic microbiological processes in millisecond resolution with flow cytometry, using standard bench-top instrumentation. Four main experimental examples are provided, namely: (1) green fluorescent protein expression by antibiotic-stressed <i>Escherichia coli</i>, (2) fluorescent labeling of heat-induced membrane damage in an autochthonous freshwater bacterial community, (3) the initial growth response of late stationary <i>E. coli</i> cells inoculated into fresh growth media, and (4) oxidative disinfection of a mixed culture of auto-fluorescent microorganisms. These examples demonstrate the broad applicability of the method to diverse biological experiments, showing that it allows the collection of detailed, time-resolved information on complex processes.</p> </div