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  • Tools for engineering coordinated system behaviour in synthetic microbial consortia.

Tools for engineering coordinated system behaviour in synthetic microbial consortia.

Nature communications (2018-07-12)
Nicolas Kylilis, Zoltan A Tuza, Guy-Bart Stan, Karen M Polizzi
ABSTRACT

Advancing synthetic biology to the multicellular level requires the development of multiple cell-to-cell communication channels that propagate information with minimal signal interference. The development of quorum-sensing devices, the cornerstone technology for building microbial communities with coordinated system behaviour, has largely focused on cognate acyl-homoserine lactone (AHL)/transcription factor pairs, while the use of non-cognate pairs as a design feature has received limited attention. Here, we demonstrate a large library of AHL-receiver devices, with all cognate and non-cognate chemical signal interactions quantified, and we develop a software tool that automatically selects orthogonal communication channels. We use this approach to identify up to four orthogonal channels in silico, and experimentally demonstrate the simultaneous use of three channels in co-culture. The development of multiple non-interfering cell-to-cell communication channels is an enabling step that facilitates the design of synthetic consortia for applications including distributed bio-computation, increased bioprocess efficiency, cell specialisation and spatial organisation.

MATERIALS
Product Number
Brand
Product Description

Sigma-Aldrich
N-(3-Hydroxytetradecanoyl)-DL-homoserine lactone, ≥96% (HPLC), carbon 64.7-67.3 %
Sigma-Aldrich
N-(3-Oxododecanoyl)-L-homoserine lactone, quorum sensing signaling molecule
Sigma-Aldrich
N-(p-Coumaroyl)-L-homoserine lactone, ≥94% (HPLC)
Sigma-Aldrich
N-(3-Oxooctanoyl)-L-homoserine lactone, ≥97% (HPLC), white, powder