_abstract.Rmd

## Abstract {.unnumbered}

Scientists have extensively studied the mechanisms that orchestrate the
growth and division of bacterial cells. Cells adapt their shape and
dimensions in response to variations in the intracellular and
extracellular environments by integrating information about the presence
of nutrients or harmful agents in the decision to grow or divide.
Filamentation is a process that occurs when rod-shaped cells stop
dividing but continue to grow, thus producing elongated cells
[@Wang2014; @Wang2014a; @jaimes-lizcano2014;
@justiceMorphologicalPlasticityBacterial2008]. Some cells can naturally
grow as filamentous, while others only do so under stressful conditions
[@cayron2020; @justiceFilamentationEscherichiaColi2006]. Here, we use
mathematical modeling and computational simulations to evaluate a toxic
agent's intracellular concentration as a function of cell length. We
show that filamentation can act as a strategy that promotes the
resilience of a bacterial population under stressful environmental
conditions.