E. coli cells growing under starvation

2016 Fiscal Year Final Research Report

• Project/Area Number: 26506003
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research (C)
• Allocation Type: Multi-year Fund
• Section: 一般
• Research Field: 宇宙生命学
• Research Institution: University of Tsukuba
• Principal Investigator: YING BEIWEN 筑波大学, 生命環境系, 准教授 (90422401)
• Project Period (FY): 2014-04-01 – 2017-03-31
• Keywords: 増殖 / 実験進化 / 適応 / 栄養枯渇 / 大腸菌

Outline of Final Research Achievements

Expreimental evolution with the E. coli cells in a repeated starvation and resuscitation manner was performed. As a common evolutionary consequence in multiple lines, the evovled cells showed a significant decrease in growth fitness under rich conditions but an improved competence with enhanced affinity to resource under poor conditions. This evolutionary change was accompanied by the fixation of repressed translation and improved transport, owing to the genetic disturbance in regulator and ribosome. Our study provides an experimental evidence of an evolutionary transition in growth economics from time-saving to resource-saving strategies, in adaptation to the slowly and irregularly oscillated environments. It indicated that the resource-saving nature of the evolved cells compensated the deficiency in growth fitness.

Free Research Field

ゲノム微生物