Evidence map›Paper›PMID 42789691›Full record

ArticleScience advances2026

Biosurfactants direct the evolutionary dynamics of surface-associated microbial systems.

Chujin Ruan, Bijing Xiong, Deepthi P Vinod, Anton Kan, Jing Wu, Madhav P Thakur, David R Johnson

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Science advances, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
0citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

0 citing papers in PubMed.

No citing paper in PubMed yet.

4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

7 authors.

Chujin RuanDepartment of Environmental Microbiology, Swiss Federal Institute of Aquatic Science and Technology (Eawag), Dübendorf, Switzerland.ORCID 0009-0009-8605-7107
Bijing XiongDepartment of Biosystems Science and Engineering, Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Zürich (ETH Zürich), Basel, Switzerland.
Deepthi P VinodDepartment of Environmental Microbiology, Swiss Federal Institute of Aquatic Science and Technology (Eawag), Dübendorf, Switzerland.ORCID 0000-0001-6542-9658
Anton KanDepartment of Materials, Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Zürich (ETH Zürich), Zürich, Switzerland.ORCID 0000-0001-9058-0464
Jing WuDepartment of Environmental Microbiology, Swiss Federal Institute of Aquatic Science and Technology (Eawag), Dübendorf, Switzerland.ORCID 0009-0005-0089-5021
Madhav P ThakurInstitute of Ecology and Evolution, University of Bern, Bern, Switzerland.ORCID 0000-0001-9426-1313
David R JohnsonDepartment of Environmental Microbiology, Swiss Federal Institute of Aquatic Science and Technology (Eawag), Dübendorf, Switzerland.ORCID 0000-0002-6728-8462

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Surface-associated microbial systems experience spatial constraints that can intensify stochastic lineage loss through genetic drift and alter how natural selection acts on competing lineages. A key feature of these systems is that steep resource gradients typically confine growth to a narrow band of cells located at the biomass periphery. This restricts the effective population size and constrains lineage interactions, thereby accelerating stochastic lineage exclusion. Here, we demonstrate that biosurfactants, which are secreted by many bacteria, can modulate the evolutionary dynamics of these systems by relaxing spatial constraints. Using

Indexed as

Biological EvolutionBiosurfactantsPseudomonas stutzeriSurface-Active AgentsEvolution, MolecularGenetic DriftGlycolipidsSurface PropertiesGlycolipidsrhamnolipidSurface-Active Agents

Identifiers

PMID42789691
PMCPMC13614376

What OpenQuestion holds

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Registered trials

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.