An organism grown in a high nutrient liquid broth to high turbidity always appears to produce a blue pigment and even when a large inoculum is transferred to a nutrient rich agar plate it appears blue. When the researcher noticed it never appears blue when very small colonies were grown in low nutrient agar plates. What is the most plausible conclusion?
A. Large populations enabled the differentiation of a subpopulation of cells that created the blue pigment.
B. Only high nutrient conditions provide enough energy for cells to produce this secondary metabolite that appears blue.
C. The blue pigment production is linked to quorum sensing.
D. The strong gradient from very high to low nutrient bioavailability induces production of the blue metabolite.
Answer:C
An organism grown in a high nutrient liquid broth to high turbidity always appears to produce a blue pigment and even when a large inoculum is transferred to a nutrient rich agar plate it appears blue. When the researcher noticed it never appears blue when very small colonies were grown in low nutrient agar plates. What is the most plausible conclusion?
A. Large populations enabled the differentiation of a subpopulation of cells that created the blue pigment. B. Only high nutrient conditions provide enough energy for cells to produce this secondary metabolite that appears blue. C. The blue pigment production is linked to quorum sensing. D. The strong gradient from very high to low nutrient bioavailability induces production of the blue metabolite.