Engineering bacterial populations via DNA messaging
Abstract/Contents
- Abstract
- Evolution has selected for organisms that benefit from genetically encoded cell-cell communication. We observe cell-cell communication throughout every scale in nature, from simple single-celled bacteria to complex multicellular mammals. Engineers have begun to repurpose elements of natural communication systems to coordinate their own population-level behaviors, including oscillations and programmed pattern formation. Existing engineered systems, however, rely on small, system-specific biomolecules to send messages among cells. However, such molecules are capable of sending only a single message, typically ``regulate transcription.'' Thus, the information transmission capacity of such biological communication systems is fundamentally limited. Through this thesis, I demonstrated the decoupling of messages from a common communication channel via the autonomous transmission of numerous arbitrary genetic messages. To do so, I engineered a cell-cell communication platform using bacteriophage M13 gene products to autonomously package and deliver heterologous DNA messages of varying lengths and encoded functions. Further, I increased the range of engineered DNA messaging across semisolid media by coupling message transmission or receipt to active cellular chemotaxis. Through this coupling, I demonstrated that our system is adaptable to different contexts by creating simple patterns. Finally, using recombinase-mediated logic gates developed within the Endy laboratory, I demonstrated the ability to program bacteria by transmitting logic gates to surrounding cells. Overall, this work significantly enhances the suite of cell-cell communication tools available to engineers. I have shown that a variety of DNA messages can be transmitted among cells and have moved the field of synthetic biology closer to designing synthetic ecologies with more complex communication schemes and varied behaviors.
Description
| Type of resource | text |
|---|---|
| Form | electronic; electronic resource; remote |
| Extent | 1 online resource. |
| Publication date | 2013 |
| Issuance | monographic |
| Language | English |
Creators/Contributors
| Associated with | Ortiz, Monica Elise |
|---|---|
| Associated with | Stanford University, Department of Bioengineering. |
| Primary advisor | Endy, Andrew D |
| Thesis advisor | Endy, Andrew D |
| Thesis advisor | Fisher, Daniel S |
| Thesis advisor | Riedel-Kruse, Hans |
| Advisor | Fisher, Daniel S |
| Advisor | Riedel-Kruse, Hans |
Subjects
| Genre | Theses |
|---|
Bibliographic information
| Statement of responsibility | Monica Elise Ortiz. |
|---|---|
| Note | Submitted to the Department of Bioengineering. |
| Thesis | Thesis (Ph.D.)--Stanford University, 2013. |
| Location | electronic resource |
Access conditions
- Copyright
- © 2013 by Monica Elise Ortiz
- License
- This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution Non Commercial 3.0 Unported license (CC BY-NC).
Also listed in
Loading usage metrics...