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Center for Nonlinear Studies |
Computation underlies the organization of cells into higher-order structures; for example, during development or the spatial association of bacteria in a biofilm. Often, each cell performs a simple computational operation, but when combined with cell-cell communication, intricate patterns are produced. Here, we study this process by combining a simple genetic circuit with quorum sensing in order to produce more complex computations in space. A simple NOR gate is constructed by arranging two tandem promoters to serve as inputs to drive the transcription of a repressor. The repressor inactivates a promoter that serves as the output. Individual colonies of E. coli carry the same NOR gate, but the inputs and outputs are wired to different orthogonal quorum sensing “sender” and “receiver” devices. This forms the wires between gates. By arranging the colonies in different spatial configurations, all possible 2-input gates are produced, including the difficult XOR and EQUALS functions. This work helps elucidate the design rules by which simple logic can be harnessed to produce more complex calculations by rewiring communication between cells
Host: Bill Hlavacek, T-6, wish@lanl.gov