---
_id: '17325'
abstract:
- lang: eng
  text: Bacterial ion fluxes are involved in the generation of energy, transport,
    and motility. As such, bacterial electrophysiology is fundamentally important
    for the bacterial life cycle, but it is often neglected and consequently, by and
    large, not understood. Arguably, the two main reasons for this are the complexity
    of measuring relevant variables in small cells with a cell envelope that contains
    the cell wall and the fact that, in a unicellular organism, relevant variables
    become intertwined in a nontrivial manner. To help give bacterial electrophysiology
    studies a firm footing, in this review, we go back to basics. We look first at
    the biophysics of bacterial membrane potential, and then at the approaches and
    models developed mostly for the study of neurons and eukaryotic mitochondria.
    We discuss their applicability to bacterial cells. Finally, we connect bacterial
    membrane potential with other relevant (electro)physiological variables and summarize
    methods that can be used to both measure and influence bacterial electrophysiology.
acknowledgement: We would like to thank all members of the Pilizota lab, as well as
  Calin Guet, Orkun Soyer, Munehiro Asally, Peter Swain, and in particular Matt Scott
  and Ariel Amir, for their support, comments, and useful discussions. T.P. and W.-C.L.
  were supported by the Leverhulme Trust, grant RPG-2019-187, and T.P. is supported
  by EPSRC Fellowship EP/V03264X/1. E.K. was supported by a European Molecular Biology
  Organization Long-Term Postdoctoral Fellowship, ALTF 44-2021.
article_processing_charge: Yes (in subscription journal)
article_type: original
author:
- first_name: Wei Chang
  full_name: Lo, Wei Chang
  last_name: Lo
- first_name: Ekaterina
  full_name: Krasnopeeva, Ekaterina
  id: 1F1EE44A-BF83-11EA-B3C1-BB9CC619BF3A
  last_name: Krasnopeeva
- first_name: Teuta
  full_name: Pilizota, Teuta
  last_name: Pilizota
citation:
  ama: Lo WC, Krasnopeeva E, Pilizota T. Bacterial Electrophysiology. <i>Annual Review
    of Biophysics</i>. 2024;53:487-510. doi:<a href="https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev-biophys-030822-032215">10.1146/annurev-biophys-030822-032215</a>
  apa: Lo, W. C., Krasnopeeva, E., &#38; Pilizota, T. (2024). Bacterial Electrophysiology.
    <i>Annual Review of Biophysics</i>. Annual Reviews. <a href="https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev-biophys-030822-032215">https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev-biophys-030822-032215</a>
  chicago: Lo, Wei Chang, Ekaterina Krasnopeeva, and Teuta Pilizota. “Bacterial Electrophysiology.”
    <i>Annual Review of Biophysics</i>. Annual Reviews, 2024. <a href="https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev-biophys-030822-032215">https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev-biophys-030822-032215</a>.
  ieee: W. C. Lo, E. Krasnopeeva, and T. Pilizota, “Bacterial Electrophysiology,”
    <i>Annual Review of Biophysics</i>, vol. 53. Annual Reviews, pp. 487–510, 2024.
  ista: Lo WC, Krasnopeeva E, Pilizota T. 2024. Bacterial Electrophysiology. Annual
    Review of Biophysics. 53, 487–510.
  mla: Lo, Wei Chang, et al. “Bacterial Electrophysiology.” <i>Annual Review of Biophysics</i>,
    vol. 53, Annual Reviews, 2024, pp. 487–510, doi:<a href="https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev-biophys-030822-032215">10.1146/annurev-biophys-030822-032215</a>.
  short: W.C. Lo, E. Krasnopeeva, T. Pilizota, Annual Review of Biophysics 53 (2024)
    487–510.
date_created: 2024-07-28T22:01:09Z
date_published: 2024-07-01T00:00:00Z
date_updated: 2025-09-08T08:34:43Z
day: '01'
ddc:
- '570'
department:
- _id: CaGu
doi: 10.1146/annurev-biophys-030822-032215
external_id:
  isi:
  - '001278237500021'
  pmid:
  - '38382113'
file:
- access_level: open_access
  checksum: e0505553b3cee624fa865f0cc5a99ecc
  content_type: application/pdf
  creator: dernst
  date_created: 2024-07-29T10:56:01Z
  date_updated: 2024-07-29T10:56:01Z
  file_id: '17339'
  file_name: 2024_AnnualReviewBiophys_Lo.pdf
  file_size: 1276645
  relation: main_file
  success: 1
file_date_updated: 2024-07-29T10:56:01Z
has_accepted_license: '1'
intvolume: '        53'
isi: 1
language:
- iso: eng
license: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
month: '07'
oa: 1
oa_version: Published Version
page: 487-510
pmid: 1
project:
- _id: eb872896-77a9-11ec-83b8-f59a38ec17f8
  grant_number: ALTF 44-2021
  name: 'Bacterial cytoplasm glass transition: passive physiological switch or active
    survival strategy'
publication: Annual Review of Biophysics
publication_identifier:
  eissn:
  - 1936-1238
  issn:
  - 1936-122X
publication_status: published
publisher: Annual Reviews
quality_controlled: '1'
scopus_import: '1'
status: public
title: Bacterial Electrophysiology
tmp:
  image: /images/cc_by.png
  legal_code_url: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/legalcode
  name: Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International Public License (CC-BY 4.0)
  short: CC BY (4.0)
type: journal_article
user_id: 317138e5-6ab7-11ef-aa6d-ffef3953e345
volume: 53
year: '2024'
...