Bacterial chemotaxis to pollutants and plant-derived aromatic molecules.

There is accumulating evidence that motile bacteria are chemotactically attracted to environmental pollutants that they can degrade. Chemotaxis, the ability of motile bacteria to detect and respond to specific chemicals in the environment, can increase an organism's chances of locating useful sources of carbon, nitrogen and energy, and could thus play an important role in the biodegradation process. Recent evidence demonstrating that chemotaxis and biodegradation genes are coordinately regulated suggests that these processes are intimately linked in nature.