Public goods and cheating in microbes

The Evolution of Cooperation

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The Black Queen Hypothesis: Evolution of Dependencies through Adaptive Gene Loss

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Social evolution theory for microorganisms

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Cooperation and conflict in quorum-sensing bacterial populations

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Snowdrift game dynamics and facultative cheating in yeast

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Targeting virulence: can we make evolution-proof drugs?

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Social cheating in <i>Pseudomonas aeruginosa</i> quorum sensing

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The tragedy of the commons in evolutionary biology

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Solutions to the Public Goods Dilemma in Bacterial Biofilms

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Public good dynamics drive evolution of iron acquisition strategies in natural bacterioplankton populations

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Developmental cheating in the social bacterium Myxococcus xanthus

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Pleiotropy as a mechanism to stabilize cooperation

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A molecular mechanism that stabilizes cooperative secretions in Pseudomonas aeruginosa

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Viscous medium promotes cooperation in the pathogenic bacteriumPseudomonas aeruginosa

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Division of Labor in Biofilms: the Ecology of Cell Differentiation

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Killing by Type VI secretion drives genetic phase separation and correlates with increased cooperation

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Optimality and robustness in quorum sensing (QS)-mediated regulation of a costly public good enzyme

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Nutrient limitation determines the fitness of cheaters in bacterial siderophore cooperation

Sexton, D. J., & Schuster, M. (2017) · Nature Communications · doi:10.1038/s41467-017-00222-2 · Cited by 108 · see citing works

Adaptation to a new environment allows cooperators to purge cheaters stochastically

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Growth dynamics and the evolution of cooperation in microbial populations

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Quorum sensing control of Type VI secretion factors restricts the proliferation of quorum-sensing mutants

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Quorum sensing protects bacterial co-operation from exploitation by cheats

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Tragedy of the commons in the chemostat

Schuster, M., Foxall, E., Finch, D. V., Smith, H. L., & Leenheer, P. D. (2017) · PLoS ONE · doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0186119 · Cited by 24 · see citing works

Cross-feeding in the gut microbiome: Ecology and mechanisms

Culp, E. J., & Goodman, A. L. (2023) · Cell Host & Microbe · doi:10.1016/j.chom.2023.03.016 · Cited by 541 · see citing works

Marine biofilms: diversity, interactions and biofouling

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Microbial communities form rich extracellular metabolomes that foster metabolic interactions and promote drug tolerance

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Endophyte-Promoted Phosphorus Solubilization in Populus

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Bacterial cooperation through horizontal gene transfer

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What is microbial dormancy?

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Gut microbiome-mediated metabolism effects on immunity in rural and urban African populations

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The pectin metabolizing capacity of the human gut microbiota

Yüksel, E., Voragen, A. G. J., & Kort, R. (2024) · Critical Reviews in Food Science and Nutrition · doi:10.1080/10408398.2024.2400235 · Cited by 87 · see citing works

Why do microbes make minerals?

Cosmidis, J., & Benzerara, K. (2022) · Comptes Rendus Géoscience · doi:10.5802/crgeos.107 · Cited by 66 · see citing works

Iron acquisition strategies in pseudomonads: mechanisms, ecology, and evolution

Kümmerli, R. (2022) · BioMetals · doi:10.1007/s10534-022-00480-8 · Cited by 65 · see citing works

Experimental Evolution in Plant-Microbe Systems: A Tool for Deciphering the Functioning and Evolution of Plant-Associated Microbial Communities

Manriquez, B., Muller, D. A. E., & Prigent‐Combaret, C. (2021) · Frontiers in Microbiology · doi:10.3389/fmicb.2021.619122 · Cited by 62 · see citing works

Quorum Sensing Regulates Bacterial Processes That Play a Major Role in Marine Biogeochemical Cycles

Urvoy, M., Labry, C., L’Helguen, S., & Lami, R. (2022) · Frontiers in Marine Science · doi:10.3389/fmars.2022.834337 · Cited by 61 · see citing works

Cooperative virulence via the collective action of secreted pathogen effectors

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Energy efficiency and biological interactions define the core microbiome of deep oligotrophic groundwater

Mehrshad, M., López-Fernández, M., Sundh, J., Bell, E., Simone, D., Buck, M., Bernier‐Latmani, R., Bertilsson, S., & Dopson, M. (2021) · Nature Communications · doi:10.1038/s41467-021-24549-z · Cited by 56 · see citing works

Domains and Major Transitions of Social Evolution

Boomsma, J. J. (2022) · doi:10.1093/oso/9780198746171.001.0001 · Cited by 54 · see citing works

Cell-cell metabolite exchange creates a pro-survival metabolic environment that extends lifespan

Correia‐Melo, C., Kamrad, S., Tengölics, R., Messner, C. B., Trébulle, P., Townsend, S., Varma, S. J., Freiwald, A., Heineike, B. M., Campbell, K., et al. (2023) · Cell · doi:10.1016/j.cell.2022.12.007 · Cited by 55 · see citing works

Dynamics of carbon substrate competition among heterotrophic microorganisms

McNichol, S. M., Sanchez-Quete, F., Loeb, S. K., Teske, A., Walter, S. R. S., & Mahmoudi, N. (2024) · The ISME Journal · doi:10.1093/ismejo/wrae018 · Cited by 52 · see citing works

Changes in interactions over ecological time scales influence single-cell growth dynamics in a metabolically coupled marine microbial community

Daniels, M., van Vliet, S., & Ackermann, M. (2023) · The ISME Journal · doi:10.1038/s41396-022-01312-w · Cited by 52 · see citing works

A mobile genetic element increases bacterial host fitness by manipulating development

Jones, J. M., Grinberg, I., Eldar, A., & Grossman, A. D. (2021) · eLife · doi:10.7554/elife.65924 · Cited by 49 · see citing works

Cooperation in Microbial Populations: Theory and Experimental Model Systems

Cremer, J., Melbinger, A., Wienand, K., Henríquez, T., Jung, H., & Frey, E. (2019) · Journal of Molecular Biology · doi:10.1016/j.jmb.2019.09.023 · Cited by 48 · see citing works

The Longevity of Colonies of Fungus-Growing Termites and the Stability of the Symbiosis

Wisselink, M., Aanen, D. K., & Padje, A. V. ’. (2020) · Insects · doi:10.3390/insects11080527 · Cited by 47 · see citing works

Cooperative antibiotic resistance facilitates horizontal gene transfer

Wang, Q., Wei, S., Silva, A. F., & Madsen, J. S. (2023) · The ISME Journal · doi:10.1038/s41396-023-01393-1 · Cited by 48 · see citing works

Prokaryote pangenomes are dynamic entities

Cummins, E., Hall, R. J., McInerney, J. O., & McNally, A. (2022) · Current Opinion in Microbiology · doi:10.1016/j.mib.2022.01.005 · Cited by 47 · see citing works

Mechanisms driving spatial distribution of residents in colony biofilms: an interdisciplinary perspective

Eigentler, L., Davidson, F. A., & Stanley‐Wall, N. R. (2022) · Open Biology · doi:10.1098/rsob.220194 · Cited by 46 · see citing works

Genomic and functional analysis of phage‐mediated horizontal gene transfer in Pseudomonas syringae on the plant surface

Hulin, M. T., Rabiey, M., Zeng, Z., Dieguez, A. V., Bellamy, S., Swift, P., Mansfıeld, J. W., Jackson, R. W., & Harrison, R. J. (2022) · New Phytologist · doi:10.1111/nph.18573 · Cited by 44 · see citing works

A novel decomposer-exploiter interaction framework of plant residue microbial decomposition

Miao, Y., Wang, W., Xu, H., Xia, Y., Gong, Q., Xu, Z., Zhang, N., Xun, W., Shen, Q., & Zhang, R. (2025) · Genome biology · doi:10.1186/s13059-025-03486-w · Cited by 44 · see citing works

Bacterial hitchhikers derive benefits from fungal housing

Venkatesh, N., Greco, C., Drott, M. T., Koss, M. J., Ludwikoski, I., Keller, N. M., & Keller, N. P. (2022) · Current Biology · doi:10.1016/j.cub.2022.02.017 · Cited by 43 · see citing works

The evolution of multicellularity and cancer: views and paradigms

Nedelcu, A. M. (2020) · Biochemical Society Transactions · doi:10.1042/bst20190992 · Cited by 44 · see citing works

Genome-Resolved Metaproteomics Decodes the Microbial and Viral Contributions to Coupled Carbon and Nitrogen Cycling in River Sediments

Rodríguez-Ramos, J. A., Borton, M., McGivern, B. B., Smith, G. J., Solden, L., Shaffer, M., Daly, R. A., Purvine, S. O., Nicora, C., Eder, E., et al. (2022) · mSystems · doi:10.1128/msystems.00516-22 · Cited by 40 · see citing works

Kin selection for cooperation in natural bacterial populations

Belcher, L. J., Dewar, A. E., Ghoul, M., & West, S. A. (2022) · Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences · doi:10.1073/pnas.2119070119 · Cited by 36 · see citing works

Kin discrimination drives territorial exclusion during Bacillus subtilis swarming and restrains exploitation of surfactin

Kraigher, B., Butolen, M., Štefanič, P., & Mandić-Mulec, I. (2021) · The ISME Journal · doi:10.1038/s41396-021-01124-4 · Cited by 37 · see citing works

Extracellular polymeric substances are closely related to land cover, microbial communities, and enzyme activity in tropical soils

Kidinda, L. K., Babin, D., Döetterl, S., Kalbitz, K., Mujinya, B. B., & Vogel, C. (2023) · Soil Biology and Biochemistry · doi:10.1016/j.soilbio.2023.109221 · Cited by 36 · see citing works

Cooperation and cheating orchestrate Vibrio assemblages and polymicrobial synergy in oysters infected with OsHV-1 virus

Oyanedel, D., Lagorce, A., Bruto, M., Haffner, P., Morot, A., Labreuche, Y., Dorant, Y., Divonne, S. D. L. F., Delavat, F., Inguimbert, N., et al. (2023) · Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences · doi:10.1073/pnas.2305195120 · Cited by 35 · see citing works

Induced Mineralization of Hydroxyapatite in Escherichia coli Biofilms and the Potential Role of Bacterial Alkaline Phosphatase

Zorzetto, L., Scoppola, E., Raguin, É., Blank, K. G., Fratzl, P., & Bidan, C. M. (2023) · Chemistry of Materials · doi:10.1021/acs.chemmater.2c02969 · Cited by 34 · see citing works

The role of microbial interactions on rhizobial fitness

Agudelo, M. G., Ruiz, B., Capela, D., & Remigi, P. (2023) · Frontiers in Plant Science · doi:10.3389/fpls.2023.1277262 · Cited by 33 · see citing works

The Impact of Microbial Interactions on Ecosystem Function Intensifies Under Stress

Bertolet, B. L., Rodríguez, L. C., Murúa, J. M., Favela, A., & Allison, S. (2024) · Ecology Letters · doi:10.1111/ele.14528 · Cited by 30 · see citing works

Soil substrate source drives the microbes involved in the degradation of gelatin used as a biostimulant

Costa, O. Y. A., Pijl, A. S., Houbraken, J. A. M. P., van Lith, W., & Kuramae, E. E. (2023) · Applied Soil Ecology · doi:10.1016/j.apsoil.2023.104906 · Cited by 30 · see citing works

Nasal commensals reduce Staphylococcus aureus proliferation by restricting siderophore availability

Zhao, Y., Bitzer, A., Power, J. J., Belikova, D., Salazar, B. O. T., Adolf, L. A., Gerlach, D., Krismer, B., & Heilbronner, S. (2024) · The ISME Journal · doi:10.1093/ismejo/wrae123 · Cited by 28 · see citing works

Cooperation and Cheating through a Secreted Aminopeptidase in the Pseudomonas aeruginosa RpoS Response

Robinson, T., Smith, P. N., Alberts, E. R., Colussi-Pelaez, M., & Schuster, M. (2020) · mBio · doi:10.1128/mbio.03090-19 · Cited by 28 · see citing works

Game-environment feedback dynamics in growing population: Effect of finite carrying capacity

Bairagya, J. D., Mondal, S. S., Chowdhury, D., & Chakraborty, S. (2021) · Physical review. E · doi:10.1103/physreve.104.044407 · Cited by 28 · see citing works

Non-genetic variability in microbial populations: survival strategy or nuisance?

Levien, E., Min, J., Kondev, J., & Amir, A. (2021) · Reports on Progress in Physics · doi:10.1088/1361-6633/ac2c92 · Cited by 28 · see citing works

The endosymbiont and the second bacterial circle of entomopathogenic nematodes

Ogier, J.-C., Akhurst, R. J., Boemare, N. E., & Gaudriault, S. (2023) · Trends in Microbiology · doi:10.1016/j.tim.2023.01.004 · Cited by 28 · see citing works

Drinking-water isolated Delftia acidovorans selectively coaggregates with partner bacteria and facilitates multispecies biofilm development

Afonso, A. C., Gomes, I. B., Saavedra, M. J., Simões, L. C., & Simões, M. V. (2023) · The Science of The Total Environment · doi:10.1016/j.scitotenv.2023.162646 · Cited by 28 · see citing works

Impact of direct physical association and motility on fitness of a synthetic interkingdom microbial community

Scarinci, G., & Sourjik, V. (2022) · The ISME Journal · doi:10.1038/s41396-022-01352-2 · Cited by 24 · see citing works

Kinship effects in quasi-social parasitoids II: co-foundress relatedness and host dangerousness interactively affect host exploitation

Abdi, M. K., Hardy, I. C. W., Jucker, C., & Lupi, D. (2020) · Biological Journal of the Linnean Society · doi:10.1093/biolinnean/blaa047 · Cited by 26 · see citing works

Spatial-temporal dynamics of a microbial cooperative behavior resistant to cheating

Monaco, H., Liu, K. S., Sereno, T., Déforet, M., Taylor, B. P., Chen, Y., Reagor, C. C., & Xavier, J. B. (2022) · Nature Communications · doi:10.1038/s41467-022-28321-9 · Cited by 27 · see citing works

Trojan horselike T6SS effector TepC mediates both interference competition and exploitative competition

Li, S., Xu, L., Wu, T., Shi, Z., Kareem, H. A., Wang, Z., Dai, Q., Guo, C., Pan, J., Yang, M., et al. (2024) · The ISME Journal · doi:10.1093/ismejo/wrad028 · Cited by 24 · see citing works

Metagenomic symphony of the intestinal ecosystem: How the composition affects the mind

Malan-Müller, S., Martín-Hernández, D., Caso, J. R., Matthijnssens, J., Rodríguez-Urrutia, A., Lowry, C. A., & Leza, J. C. (2025) · Brain, Behavior, and Immunity · doi:10.1016/j.bbi.2024.09.033 · Cited by 24 · see citing works

Rhamnolipids stabilize quorum sensing mediated cooperation in Pseudomonas aeruginosa

García‐Contreras, R., Loarca, D., Pérez-González, C., Jiménez-Cortés, J. G., González‐Valdez, A., & Soberón‐Chávez, G. (2020) · FEMS Microbiology Letters · doi:10.1093/femsle/fnaa080 · Cited by 24 · see citing works

A novel thermostable YtnP lactonase from Stenotrophomonas maltophilia inhibits Pseudomonas aeruginosa virulence in vitro and in vivo

Ćurčić, J., Dinić, M., Novović, K., Vasiljevic, Z. V., Kojić, M., Jovčić, B., & Malešević, M. (2024) · International Journal of Biological Macromolecules · doi:10.1016/j.ijbiomac.2024.130421 · Cited by 23 · see citing works

Iron limitation by transferrin promotes simultaneous cheating of pyoverdine and exoprotease in Pseudomonas aeruginosa

Tostado-Islas, O., Mendoza-Ortiz, A., Ramírez-García, G., Cabrera-Takane, I. D., Loarca, D., Pérez-González, C., Jasso‐Chávez, R., Jiménez-Cortés, J. G., Hoshiko, Y., Maeda, T., et al. (2021) · The ISME Journal · doi:10.1038/s41396-021-00938-6 · Cited by 22 · see citing works

Ecology drives the evolution of diverse social strategies in Pseudomonas aeruginosa

Figueiredo, A. R. T., Wagner, A., & Kümmerli, R. (2021) · Molecular Ecology · doi:10.1111/mec.16119 · Cited by 19 · see citing works

The cost of bacterial predation via type VI secretion system leads to predator extinction under environmental stress

Gupta, S., Ray, S., Khan, A., China, A., Das, D., & Mallick, A. I. (2021) · iScience · doi:10.1016/j.isci.2021.103507 · Cited by 23 · see citing works

Controlling evolutionary dynamics to optimize microbial bioremediation

Shibasaki, S., & Mitri, S. (2020) · Evolutionary Applications · doi:10.1111/eva.13050 · Cited by 19 · see citing works

Microbial Mutualism: Will You Still Need Me, Will You Still Feed Me?

Figueiredo, A. R. T., & Kümmerli, R. (2020) · Current Biology · doi:10.1016/j.cub.2020.07.002 · Cited by 21 · see citing works

Metagenomic discovery and functional validation of L-asparaginases with anti-leukemic effect from the Caspian Sea

Sobat, M., Asad, S., Kabiri, M., & Mehrshad, M. (2021) · iScience · doi:10.1016/j.isci.2020.101973 · Cited by 21 · see citing works

Jellyfish detritus supports niche partitioning and metabolic interactions among pelagic marine bacteria

Tinta, T., Zhao, Z., Bayer, B., & Herndl, G. J. (2023) · Microbiome · doi:10.1186/s40168-023-01598-8 · Cited by 21 · see citing works

Shedding light on bacteria–host interactions with the aid of TnSeq approaches

Torres, M., Paszti, S., & Eberl, L. (2024) · mBio · doi:10.1128/mbio.00390-24 · Cited by 20 · see citing works

Siderophore-mediated iron partition promotes dynamical coexistence between cooperators and cheaters

Shao, J., Rong, N., Wu, Z., Gu, S., Liu, B., Shen, N., & Li, Z. (2023) · iScience · doi:10.1016/j.isci.2023.107396 · Cited by 23 · see citing works

Mutualism between degraders and nondegraders stabilizes the function of a natural biopolymer-degrading community

Liu, L., Tian, C. F., Wang, M., Ying, L., Huang, Y., Jiang, T., Zhao, H., Yu, Q., Wang, E. T., Yang, J., et al. (2025) · Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences · doi:10.1073/pnas.2500664122 · Cited by 19 · see citing works

Powerful ordered collective heat engines

Filho, F. S., Forão, G. A. L., Busiello, D. M., Cleuren, B., & Fiore, C. E. (2023) · Physical Review Research · doi:10.1103/physrevresearch.5.043067 · Cited by 19 · see citing works

Roles and Regulation of Quorum Sensing of Acidophiles in Bioleaching: A Review

Luo, W., Li, Y., Chen, S., Liang, Y., & Liu, X. (2024) · Microorganisms · doi:10.3390/microorganisms12030422 · Cited by 19 · see citing works

Metal-induced bacterial interactions promote diversity in river-sediment microbiomes

Cyriaque, V., Géron, A., Gabriel Billon, A., Nesme, J., Werner, J., Gillan, D. C., Sørensen, S. J., & Wattiez, R. (2020) · FEMS Microbiology Ecology · doi:10.1093/femsec/fiaa076 · Cited by 19 · see citing works

Hidden decomposers: Revisiting saprotrophy among soil protists and its potential impact on carbon cycling

Maillard, F., Klinghammer, F., Jassey, V., Zhang, B., Kennedy, P. G., Lara, E., Geisen, S., Tranvik, L., Hammer, E. C., & Tunlid, A. (2025) · Soil Biology and Biochemistry · doi:10.1016/j.soilbio.2025.109786 · Cited by 18 · see citing works

Mechanisms Involved in the Active Secretion of CTX-M-15 β-Lactamase by Pathogenic Escherichia coli ST131

Rangama, S., Lidbury, I. D. E. A., Holden, J. M., Borsetto, C., Murphy, A. R. J., Hawkey, P. M., & Wellington, E. M. H. (2021) · Antimicrobial Agents and Chemotherapy · doi:10.1128/aac.00663-21 · Cited by 18 · see citing works

Bacillus subtilis extracellular protease production incurs a context‐dependent cost

Rosazza, T., Eigentler, L., Earl, C., Davidson, F. A., & Stanley‐Wall, N. R. (2023) · Molecular Microbiology · doi:10.1111/mmi.15110 · Cited by 18 · see citing works

Type 1 fimbriae-mediated collective protection against type 6 secretion system attacks

Dessartine, M. M., Kosta, A., Doan, T., Cascales, É., & Côté, J.-P. (2024) · mBio · doi:10.1128/mbio.02553-23 · Cited by 18 · see citing works

A Salvaging Strategy Enables Stable Metabolite Provisioning among Free-Living Bacteria

Gude, S., Pherribo, G. J., & Taga, M. E. (2022) · mSystems · doi:10.1128/msystems.00288-22 · Cited by 16 · see citing works

How public can public goods be? Environmental context shapes the evolutionary ecology of partially private goods

Lerch, B. A., Smith, D. A., Koffel, T., Bagby, S. C., & Abbott, K. C. (2022) · PLoS Computational Biology · doi:10.1371/journal.pcbi.1010666 · Cited by 21 · see citing works

Quorum Sensing Regulates the Hydrolytic Enzyme Production and Community Composition of Heterotrophic Bacteria in Coastal Waters

Urvoy, M., Lami, R., Dréanno, C., Delmas, D., L’Helguen, S., & Labry, C. (2021) · Frontiers in Microbiology · doi:10.3389/fmicb.2021.780759 · Cited by 16 · see citing works

Tracking bacteria at high density with FAST, the Feature-Assisted Segmenter/Tracker

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Optogenetic Tools for Control of Public Goods in Saccharomyces cerevisiae

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The Evolution of Microbial Facilitation: Sociogenesis, Symbiogenesis, and Transition in Individuality

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