Escherichia coli bacteria imaged by high-speed inline force mapping and fluorescence microscopy. Simultaneous topography and elastic modulus maps show a stiffening of the division site. Light and ...

"Escherichia coli are great to demonstrate such effects because they are well studied. Despite this, the dynamic [mechanical] changes [that occur in E. coli at the] nanoscale level… remain elusive." ...

The team also observed a weak spot, less than 100 nm in diameter, in a dividing E. coli cell that ruptured, causing cell depressurization and death. Interestingly, the bursting cell caused ...

Current optical and electron microscopy imaging techniques are not suited for measuring the dynamic characteristics of living microorganisms at tiny scales due to complex sample preparation methods or ...