Communicating in a fashion similar to the brain's nerve cells, bacteria use electrical signals that pass in and out of their bodies. Reported by Yahoo News, these signals are moderated by gate-keeper proteins.
In a study, which was recently published in the Nature journal, researchers determined the behaviour of a bacterial colony given a certain size. With such a volume, the microbes at the edge of the colony have unlimited access to nutrients whereas those which are more centrally located risk hunger.
The scientists observed that the former allow periods of growth stoppage, which enable the flow of nutrients to the latter. In this way, the bacteria at the centre receive sufficient 'food' and are able to withstand chemicals and antibiotics.
They also observed that the signals that are passed among the bacteria are exchanged through waves of electrically charged potassium ions. When this channel was removed communication also ceased.
Dr Gurol Suel, the study's lead scientist from the University of California, likens this function of the communities of bacterias within biofilms to a microbial brain.
This is because similarly the activity of the brain's neurons where all senses, behaviour and even intelligence are the result of the electrical communications of these neurons that are facilitated by ion channels.
"Now we find that bacteria use similar ion channels to communicate and resolve metabolic stress. Our discovery suggests that neurological disorders that are triggered by metabolic stress may have ancient bacterial origins, and could thus provide a new perspective on how to treat such conditions."
According to the The Daily Mail, the mechanism used is similar to the human brain's cortical spreading depression process which is related to migraines and epileptic seizures. Dr.Suel explains that both migraine and the bacteria's electrical signals are triggered by metabolic stress.
"This suggests that many drugs originally developed for epilepsy and migraines may also be effective in attacking bacterial biofilms, which have become a growing health problem around the world because of their resistance to antibiotics."
