Spontaneous spatio-temporal organization in yeast cell suspension

Area of Science:

• Biochemistry
• Systems Biology
• Nonlinear Dynamics

Background:

• Yeast Saccharomyces uvarum cell suspensions can exhibit synchronized glycolytic oscillations.
• Spatial patterns can emerge in unstirred suspensions with controlled substrate supply.
• Understanding spatio-temporal dynamics in biological systems is crucial.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the emergence and characteristics of spatial patterns in yeast glycolytic oscillations.
• To analyze the nature of moving waves in unstirred yeast cell suspensions.
• To compare observed patterns with other biological and chemical systems.

Main Methods:

• Utilizing cell suspensions of yeast Saccharomyces uvarum.
• Employing continuous feeding of enzymically liberated glucose.
• Measuring NADH absorption in an annular cuvette to detect spatial patterns.
• Observing and quantifying moving wave structures.

Main Results:

• Synchronized glycolytic oscillations and spatial patterns were induced in yeast cell suspensions.
• Moving waves with a wavelength of approximately 10 cm and velocity of 5 cm/min were observed.
• These waves originated from phase-leading volume elements.
• Wave formation was transient, occurring only at the beginning of oscillations before spatial synchrony increased.

Conclusions:

• Yeast glycolytic oscillations can generate complex spatio-temporal structures, including moving waves.
• The observed waves share similarities with patterns in slime mold aggregation and chemical reactions like Belousov-Zhabotinsky.
• These findings highlight the potential for emergent spatial organization in biochemical systems.