Welcome to the In-Silico Model of butyrolactone regulation in Streptomyces coelicolor

About the Project

Streptomyces coelicolor are Gram-positive soil-dwelling bacteria, which are known as prolific source of secondary metabolites, such as antibiotics. As the end-products can be toxic even to the producing organisms, antibiotic production is carefully coordinated in the bacterial population. This is achieved through the use of by SCB1-3, the diffusible signalling molecules of the γ-butyrolactone (GBL) family, in a manner analogous to acyl homoserine lactone (AHL)-based quorum sensing (QS). The GBL regulatory system involves a small, yet complex two gene (ScbA and ScbR) network, which governs a bistable switch between the "on" and "off" states of antibiotic production. The mechanism of this network is not fully defined, although several alternative scenarios have been proposed. The aim of this project is therefore the design and analysis of a model which will successfully describe the GBL regulatory system and allow reliable predictions of its behaviour. The complete elucidation of this system could potentially lead to the design of robust and sensitive systems with significant applications as orthologous regulatory circuits in synthetic biology and biotechnology.