Negative auto-regulation increases the input dynamic-range of the arabinose system of Escherichia coli

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Gene regulation networks are made of recurring regulatory patterns, called network motifs. One of the most common network motifs is negative auto-regulation, in which a transcription factor represses its own production. Negative auto-regulation has several potential functions: it can shorten the response time (time to reach halfway to steady-state), stabilize expression against noise, and linearize the gene's input-output response curve. This latter function of negative auto-regulation, which increases the range of input signals over which downstream genes respond, has been studied by theory and synthetic gene circuits. Here we ask whether negative auto-regulation preserves this function also in the context of a natural system, where it is embedded within many additional interactions. To address this, we studied the negative auto-regulation motif in the arabinose utilization system of <it>Escherichia coli</it>, in which negative auto-regulation is part of a complex regulatory network.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>We find that when negative auto-regulation is disrupted by placing the regulator <it>araC </it>under constitutive expression, the input dynamic range of the arabinose system is reduced by 10-fold. The apparent Hill coefficient of the induction curve changes from about <it>n </it>= 1 with negative auto-regulation, to about <it>n </it>= 2 when it is disrupted. We present a mathematical model that describes how negative auto-regulation can increase input dynamic-range, by coupling the transcription factor protein level to the input signal.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>Here we demonstrate that the negative auto-regulation motif in the native arabinose system of <it>Escherichia coli </it>increases the range of arabinose signals over which the system can respond. In this way, negative auto-regulation may help to increase the input dynamic-range while maintaining the specificity of cooperative regulatory systems. This function may contribute to explaining the common occurrence of negative auto-regulation in biological systems.</p

Cell-to-cell spread of HIV permits ongoing replication despite antiretroviral therapy

Latency and ongoing replication have both been proposed to explain the drug-insensitive human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) reservoir maintained during antiretroviral therapy. Here we explore a novel mechanism for ongoing HIV replication in the face of antiretroviral drugs. We propose a model whereby multiple infections per cell lead to reduced sensitivity to drugs without requiring drug-resistant mutations, and experimentally validate the model using multiple infections per cell by cell-free HIV in the presence of the drug tenofovir. We then examine the drug sensitivity of cell-to-cell spread of HIV, a mode of HIV transmission that can lead to multiple infection events per target cell. Infections originating from cell-free virus decrease strongly in the presence of antiretrovirals tenofovir and efavirenz whereas infections involving cell-to-cell spread are markedly less sensitive to the drugs. The reduction in sensitivity is sufficient to keep multiple rounds of infection from terminating in the presence of drugs. We examine replication from cell-to-cell spread in the presence of clinical drug concentrations using a stochastic infection model and find that replication is intermittent, without substantial accumulation of mutations. If cell-to-cell spread has the same properties in vivo, it may have adverse consequences for the immune system, lead to therapy failure in individuals with risk factors, and potentially contribute to viral persistence and hence be a barrier to curing HIV infection

Oscillations and variability in the p53 system

Understanding the dynamics and variability of protein circuitry requires accurate measurements in living cells as well as theoretical models. To address this, we employed one of the best-studied protein circuits in human cells, the negative feedback loop between the tumor suppressor p53 and the oncogene Mdm2. We measured the dynamics of fluorescently tagged p53 and Mdm2 over several days in individual living cells. We found that isogenic cells in the same environment behaved in highly variable ways following DNA-damaging gamma irradiation: some cells showed undamped oscillations for at least 3 days (more than 10 peaks). The amplitude of the oscillations was much more variable than the period. Sister cells continued to oscillate in a correlated way after cell division, but lost correlation after about 11 h on average. Other cells showed low-frequency fluctuations that did not resemble oscillations. We also analyzed different families of mathematical models of the system, including a novel checkpoint mechanism. The models point to the possible source of the variability in the oscillations: low-frequency noise in protein production rates, rather than noise in other parameters such as degradation rates. This study provides a view of the extensive variability of the behavior of a protein circuit in living human cells, both from cell to cell and in the same cell over time

Invariant Distribution of Promoter Activities in Escherichia coli

Cells need to allocate their limited resources to express a wide range of genes. To understand how Escherichia coli partitions its transcriptional resources between its different promoters, we employ a robotic assay using a comprehensive reporter strain library for E. coli to measure promoter activity on a genomic scale at high-temporal resolution and accuracy. This allows continuous tracking of promoter activity as cells change their growth rate from exponential to stationary phase in different media. We find a heavy-tailed distribution of promoter activities, with promoter activities spanning several orders of magnitude. While the shape of the distribution is almost completely independent of the growth conditions, the identity of the promoters expressed at different levels does depend on them. Translation machinery genes, however, keep the same relative expression levels in the distribution across conditions, and their fractional promoter activity tracks growth rate tightly. We present a simple optimization model for resource allocation which suggests that the observed invariant distributions might maximize growth rate. These invariant features of the distribution of promoter activities may suggest design constraints that shape the allocation of transcriptional resources

Terminal ballistics

This book comprehensively discusses essential aspects of terminal ballistics, combining experimental data, numerical simulations and analytical modeling. This new, 3rd edition reflects a number of recent advances in materials science, such as the use of polyurea layers on metallic plates in order to improve their ballistics. In addition, more data and analyses are now available on dwell and interface defeat in ceramic tiles coated with polymers, and are presented here. Lastly, the new edition includes new results, numerical and empirical, concerning the DIF issue in brittle solids, as well as the “upturn” phenomenon in the stress–strain curves of ductile solids.The author also added a new analysis of concrete penetration experiments which accounts for the scaling issue in this field. This is a new,and important, addition which we are happy to announce. They also added some new insights into the interaction of EEP’s and FSP projectiles with metallic plates. Throughout the book, the authors demonstrate the advantages of the simulation approach in terms of understanding the basic physics behind the phenomena investigated, making it a must-read for all professionals who need to understand terminal ballistics

Terminal ballistics

This book comprehensively discusses essential aspects of terminal ballistics, combining experimental data, numerical simulations and analytical modeling. Employing a unique approach to numerical simulations as a measure of sensitivity for the major physical parameters, the new edition also includes the following features: new figures to better illustrate the problems discussed; improved explanations for the equation of state of a solid and for the cavity expansion process; new data concerning the Kolsky bar test; and a discussion of analytical modeling for the hole diameter in a thin metallic plate impacted by a shaped charge jet. The section on thick concrete targets penetrated by rigid projectiles has now been expanded to include the latest findings, and two new sections have been added: one on a novel approach to the perforation of thin concrete slabs, and one on testing the failure of thin metallic plates using a hydrodynamic ram

Terminal Ballistics

This book covers the important issues of terminal ballistics in a comprehensive way combining experimental data, numerical simulations and analytical modeling. The first chapter reviews the experimental equipment which are used for ballistic tests and the diagnostics for material characterization under impulsive loading conditions. The second chapter covers essential features of the codes which are used for terminal ballistics such as the Euler vs. Lagrange schemes and meshing techniques, as well as the most popular material models. The third chapter, devoted to the penetration mechanics of rigid penetrators, brings the update of modeling in this field. The fourth chapter deals with plate perforation and the fifth chapter deals with the penetration mechanics of shaped charge jets and eroding long rods. The last two chapters discuss several techniques for the disruption and defeating of the main threats in armor design. Throughout the book the authors demonstrate the advantages of numerical simulations in understanding the basic physics behind the investigated phenomena