A morbidostat is a bioreactor that uses antibiotics to control the growth of bacteria, making it well-suited for studying the evolution of antibiotic resistance. However, morbidostats are often too expensive to be used in educational settings. Here we present a low-cost morbidostat called the EVolutionary biorEactor (EVE) that can be built by students with minimal engineering and programming experience. We describe how we validated EVE in a real classroom setting by evolving replicate populations under chloramphenicol challenge, thereby enabling students to learn about bacterial growth and antibiotic resistance.

Download full-text PDF

Source
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC9683782PMC
http://dx.doi.org/10.7554/eLife.83067DOI Listing

Publication Analysis

Top Keywords

evolutionary bioreactor
8
antibiotic resistance
8
low-cost open-source
4
open-source evolutionary
4
bioreactor educational
4
educational morbidostat
4
morbidostat bioreactor
4
bioreactor antibiotics
4
antibiotics control
4
control growth
4

Similar Publications

The thraustochytrids are a group of marine protists known for their significant ecological roles as decomposers and parasites as well as for their potential biotechnological applications, yet their evolutionary and structural diversity remains poorly understood. Our review critically examines the phylogeny of this taxa, utilizing available up-to-date knowledge and their taxonomic classifications. Additionally, advanced imaging techniques, including electron microscopy, are employed to explore the ultrastructural characteristics of these organisms, revealing key features that contribute to their adaptive capabilities in varying marine environments.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Evolutionary insights into the stereoselectivity of imine reductases based on ancestral sequence reconstruction.

Nat Commun

November 2024

State Key Laboratory of Bioreactor Engineering, Shanghai Collaborative Innovation Center for Biomanufacturing, East China University of Science and Technology, Shanghai, China.

The stereoselectivity of enzymes plays a central role in asymmetric biocatalytic reactions, but there remains a dearth of evolution-driven biochemistry studies investigating the evolutionary trajectory of this vital property. Imine reductases (IREDs) are one such enzyme that possesses excellent stereoselectivity, and stereocomplementary members are pervasive in the family. However, the regulatory mechanism behind stereocomplementarity remains cryptic.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Deciphering defense system modulating bacteria-mobile genetic elements symbiosis in microbial aggregates under elevated hydraulic stress.

Water Res

January 2025

College of Environmental and Resource Sciences, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou 310085, China; Innovation Center of Yangtze River Delta, Zhejiang University, Jiashan 314100, China. Electronic address:

Article Synopsis
  • Bacterial defense systems are evolving to protect against mobile genetic elements (MGEs), but their distribution in engineered systems like membrane bioreactors is not well understood.
  • In this study, researchers found that bacterial defense systems in activated sludge flocs and membrane-attached biofilms showed similar patterns, influenced by genome size and bacterial type, particularly under stress.
  • Additionally, while most defenses were similar between bacteria and their associated MGEs, a significant portion of viral elements carried unique defense systems that may enhance bacteria's ability to adapt to environmental challenges, especially regarding biotic defense and antibiotic resistance.
View Article and Find Full Text PDF
Article Synopsis
  • Methanol can be produced from CO or methane, making it a key player in addressing climate change through a methanol economy.
  • Researchers developed a new strain of E. coli that grows rapidly, with a doubling time of 3.5 hours, which is competitive with other methylotrophs.
  • The study highlights the use of dynamic copy number variation (CNV) in creating synthetic microorganisms and points to their potential for sustainable biotechnological advancements.
View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Design and Validation of a PLC-Controlled Morbidostat for Investigating Bacterial Drug Resistance.

Bioengineering (Basel)

August 2024

Biosystems and Bioprocess Engineering Group (Bio2Eng), Spanish National Research Council (IIM-CSIC), Rúa Eduardo Cabello 6, 36208 Vigo, Spain.

Article Synopsis
  • Adaptive laboratory evolution experiments risk losing valuable data if there's any interruption in monitoring, highlighting the need for more robust control systems than typical homemade mini-bioreactors.
  • The study introduces a PLC-controlled morbidostat designed for continuous culture experiments to understand how microorganisms develop drug resistance, boasting improved hardware and software for better monitoring.
  • Validation of the morbidostat revealed that microorganisms exposed to increasing levels of the antimicrobial compound DDAC showed increased susceptibility and significant growth changes, indicating successful adaptive evolution.
View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Want AI Summaries of new PubMed Abstracts delivered to your In-box?

Enter search terms and have AI summaries delivered each week - change queries or unsubscribe any time!