Understanding Performance Tradeoffs in Programmable Synthetic Cell Consortia
Abstract
Synthetic quorum sensing (QS) systems could potentially achieve circuit complexity by reducing SynBio circuits into individually programmable (modular) components that interact across a cell consortia (co-culture) setup. Although target genes can be expressed in this way under ideal conditions, fidelity of dynamic circuit response is limited by channel noise and other uncertainties. Additionally, QS channel function is fundamentally dependent upon cell density, type, and distribution. We consider performance of a SynBio circuit as the extent to which its expressed proteins (e.g., fluorescent reporter proteins) can be used to reconstruct the circuit stimulus (e.g., exposure profile in media). We therefore hypothesize that if a SynBio circuit can be distributed across cell consortia with an artificial quorum sensing system, then [H1] a distributed SynBio circuit will more accurately (or sensitively) respond to a dynamic exposure than an equally complex circuit expressed within a single cell. We have shown previously that complex signaling systems can track stimuli with high fidelity; thus, intermediate levels of signaling complexity might actually improve performance, not degrade it. Due to reliance on intercellular signaling molecules, we also hypothesize that [H2] any performance differentials between composite / distributed SynBio circuits will correlate with both the environmental conditions and the number of molecular interactions in the distributed expression system.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Oct 28, 2022
- Accession Number
- AD1186993
Entities
People
- Michael L. Mayo
Organizations
- Engineer Research and Development Center