The calculative nature of microbial biofilms and bioaggregates

Biological proliferation is optimized at various levels of organization, including the molecule (e.g. nucleic acids, prions), the cell (e.g. prokaryotic cells, eukaryotic cells), and the community (e.g. microbial biofilms, bioaggregates). Although it was initially assumed that this occurred through the genesis of information within DNA alone, it now appears that innovative design originates at other levels of organization in addition to DNA. For example, the recombination of community structures affects the proliferation rate of genetic structures; and the recombination of genetic structures affects the proliferation rate of community structures. This feedback mechanism computes compromises between the form and function of both community and nucleic acid. A nested series of proliferating objects (e.g. genetic structure, cell structure, community structure) is thus capable of continually updating the form of each object in the series. This accounts for the calculative nature of prokaryotic cells, eukaryotic cells, biofilms, bioaggregates, microbial consortia, and most other complex adaptive systems. © Springer-Verlag and SEM 2002.