Elucidation of environmental factors influencing the balance between growth maximization and response time minimization in prokaryotes

• Applicant: Professor Dr. Christoph Kaleta
• Subject Area: Bioinformatics and Theoretical Biology ; Metabolism, Biochemistry and Genetics of Microorganisms
• Term: from 2013 to 2022
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 229707008

Being able to rapidly adapt to changes in environmental conditions is a key trait required for successful survival in the microbial world. However, the ability to rapidly adjust to changes in conditions in most situations conflicts with another objective - the maximization of growth rate. This conflict arises from the limited resources available to cells that have to balance their investment between processes that support growth in a specific environment and processes that allow them to survive potential environmental challenges. Building on the results of the initial funding period, the aim of this project is to identify mechanisms that allow bacteria to rapidly adjust to environmental challengesand investigate how the environment itself influences the intricate balance between maximization of growth and minimization of response times. To this end, we will use a close cycle of theoretical and experimental work, in which we will investigate two important model systems that are inherently influenced by this trade-off: the balance between sparse as well as pervasive transcriptional regulation of metabolic pathways and poising of RNA polymerase for accelerating transcriptional responses. In particular, we will address how environmental conditions and the quality of the environment as well as the frequency of changes influence the optimal balance between growth maximization and response time minimization in these two model systems in silico as well as in vivo. Thus, this project will provide key insights into an important trade-off in microbial survival and will open up novel avenues for exploiting knowledge about processes that are of key importance for rapid responses to combat infections.

• DFG Programme: Research Grants
• International Connection: Denmark
• Co-Investigator: Professor Jakob Møller-Jensen, Ph.D.