Trojan horses

A single-celled organism has eaten bacteria, which are easily visible because they were treated with green dye. Some bacteria can live within organisms, waiting to be released back into the environment, much like the ancient Greeks’ tactic in the Trojan War. Matt First, a postdoctoral scientist at WHOI, searches for microbial “Trojan horses” in the ocean. These are bacteria that can resist being digested by the single-celled organisms that eat them. Read more about his work in the latest issue of Oceanus Magazine.
(Photo courtesy of Matthew First, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution)