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Metabolic interactions between dynamic bacterial subpopulations
Adam Z Rosenthal1,2, Yutao Qi1,2, Sahand Hormoz1,2
1Division of Biology and Biological Engineering, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, United States.
Elife
|May 30, 2018
Summary
Clonal bacterial populations exhibit metabolic specialization, dividing into distinct subpopulations with different growth rates and functions. This dynamic state-switching allows bacteria to control their environment in response to acetate levels.
Area of Science:
- Microbiology
- Bacterial Physiology
- Metabolic Engineering
Background:
- Microbial species specialize in metabolic niches within communities.
- Metabolic specialization within clonal bacterial populations is not well understood.
- The functions and coordination of such specialization remain unclear.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate metabolic specialization within a clonal bacterial population.
- To identify the functions and dynamics of metabolic subpopulations.
- To understand how environmental factors influence specialization.
Main Methods:
- Culturing of Bacillus subtilis under exponential growth.
- Analysis of distinct metabolic subpopulations.
- Monitoring of gene expression for metabolic pathways.
- Assessment of growth rates and interconversion between states.
- Investigating the impact of acetate concentration.
Main Results:
- Bacillus subtilis cultures divided into distinct metabolic subpopulations.
- One subpopulation produced acetate, while another produced acetoin.
- Subpopulations displayed different growth rates and dynamic state interconversion.
- Acetate concentration modulated the relative sizes of these subpopulations.
Conclusions:
- Clonal bacterial populations can exhibit metabolic specialization.
- Specialization involves dynamic, environmentally-sensitive state-switching.
- Metabolic specialization allows clonal populations to control their environment.
Keywords:
B. subtilisBacillus subtilisacetatecomputational biologydivision of laborfermentationinfectious diseasemicrobiologyoverflow metabolismsystems biologyMore Related Videos
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