John King

Systems Biology of Clostridium acetobutylicum - a possible answer to dwindling crude oil reserves

This model assumes a phenotypic switch between an acid- and solvent-forming population caused by the changing pH levels. The two phenotypes differ in their transcriptomic, proteomic, and ,thus, their metabolomic profile. Because the growth rates of these phenotypes depends on the extracellular pH, the initiation of the pH-shift results in a significant decline of the acidogenic population. Simultaneously, the solvent-forming population rises and establishes an new steady state.

The model is build ...

Quorum sensing(QS) allows the bacteria to monitor their surroundings and the size of their population. Staphylococcus aureus makes use of QS to regulate the production of virulence factors. This mathematical model of the QS system in S aureus was presented and analyzed (Journal of Mathematical Biology(2010) 61:17–54) in order to clarify the roles of the distinct interactions that make up the QS process, demonstrating which reactions dominate the behaviour of the system at various timepoints. ...

Bacillus subtilis cells may opt to forgo normal cell division and instead form spores if subjected to certain environmental stimuli, for example nutrient deficiency or extreme temperature. The gene regulation net-work governing sporulation initiation accordingly incorporates a variety of signals and is of significant complexity. The present model (Bulletin of Mathematical Biology (2011) 73:181–211) includes four of these signals: nutrient levels, DNA damage, the products of the competence genes, ...