Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jul 8, 2026
06:53
Parallel Measurement of Circadian Clock Gene Expression and Hormone Secretion in Human Primary Cell Cultures
Published on: November 11, 2016
A synthetic gene-metabolic oscillator
Eileen Fung1, Wilson W Wong, Jason K Suen
1Department of Chemical Engineering, University of California-Los Angeles, Los Angeles, California 90095, USA.
Nature
|May 6, 2005
Summary
Researchers engineered a synthetic gene-metabolic circuit in E. coli to create autonomous biological oscillations. This novel system utilizes glycolytic flux and acetyl phosphate to control gene expression, demonstrating predictable system-wide oscillations.
Area of Science:
- Synthetic biology
- Metabolic engineering
- Systems biology
Background:
- Autonomous biological oscillations are crucial in cellular functions.
- De novo designed oscillators offer unique applications beyond natural systems.
- Integrating metabolic flux with transcriptional control is key for robust synthetic oscillators.
Purpose of the Study:
- To design and construct a synthetic gene-metabolic oscillator in Escherichia coli K12.
- To achieve transcriptional and metabolic integration characteristic of natural oscillators.
- To explore the use of metabolic flux as a control factor for system-wide oscillations.
Main Methods:
- Designed a synthetic circuit using glycolytic flux and acetyl phosphate signaling.
- Implemented transcriptional control of enzymes by acetyl phosphate.
- Utilized bifurcation analysis to predict and experimentally verify oscillation boundaries.
Main Results:
- Successfully generated autonomous oscillations in the synthetic circuit.
- Demonstrated that oscillation occurs when glycolytic rate exceeds a critical threshold.
- Validated the predictability of the de novo gene-metabolic circuit through nonlinear dynamic analysis.
Conclusions:
- Metabolic flux can be effectively used as a control factor for system-wide biological oscillations.
- De novo designed gene-metabolic circuits exhibit predictable behavior.
- This work advances the design principles of synthetic biological oscillators.
Related Concept Videos
01:58Prokaryotic Transcriptional Activators and Repressors
The organization of prokaryotic genes in their genome is notably different from that of eukaryotes. Prokaryotic genes are organized, such that the genes for proteins involved in the same biochemical process or function are located together in groups. This group of genes, along with their regulatory elements, are collectively known as an operon. The functional genes in an operon are transcribed together to give a single strand of mRNA known as polycistronic mRNA.
Transcription of prokaryotic...
Transcription of prokaryotic...
02:19Circadian Rhythms and Gene Regulation
The biological clock is involved in many aspects of regulating complex physiology in all animals. It was in 1935 when German zoologists, Hans Kalmus and Erwin Bünning, discovered the existence of circadian rhythm in Drosophila melanogaster. However, the internal molecular mechanisms behind the circadian clock remained a mystery until 1984, when Jeffrey C. Hall, Michael Rosbash, and Michael W. Young discovered the expression of the Per gene oscillating over a 24-hour cycle. In subsequent years,...
02:55Synthetic Biology
Synthetic biology is an interdisciplinary science that involves using principles from disciplines such as engineering, molecular biology, cell biology, and systems biology. It involves remodeling existing organisms from nature or constructing completely new synthetic organisms for applications such as protein or enzyme production, bioremediation, value-added macromolecule production, and the addition of desirable traits to crops, to name a few.
Golden rice
Golden rice is a genetically modified...
Golden rice
Golden rice is a genetically modified...
01:58Prokaryotic Transcriptional Activators and Repressors
The organization of prokaryotic genes in their genome is notably different from that of eukaryotes. Prokaryotic genes are organized, such that the genes for proteins involved in the same biochemical process or function are located together in groups. This group of genes, along with their regulatory elements, are collectively known as an operon. The functional genes in an operon are transcribed together to give a single strand of mRNA known as polycistronic mRNA.
Transcription of prokaryotic...
Transcription of prokaryotic...
02:19Circadian Rhythms and Gene Regulation
The biological clock is involved in many aspects of regulating complex physiology in all animals. It was in 1935 when German zoologists, Hans Kalmus and Erwin Bünning, discovered the existence of circadian rhythm in Drosophila melanogaster. However, the internal molecular mechanisms behind the circadian clock remained a mystery until 1984, when Jeffrey C. Hall, Michael Rosbash, and Michael W. Young discovered the expression of the Per gene oscillating over a 24-hour cycle. In subsequent years,...
01:23Operon Model
The operon model represents a fundamental mechanism of gene regulation in prokaryotes, enabling coordinated expression of genes involved in related metabolic or functional pathways. Operons consist of structural genes, a promoter, and an operator, with transcription regulated by repressors, activators, and small effector molecules.Structure and Function of OperonsAn operon is a cluster of structural genes transcribed together under the control of a single promoter. The promoter region...