AI Article Synopsis
- Microbial metabolism can adapt to use different types of nutrients, allowing organisms to grow even when the nutrient availability varies significantly.
- Researchers created a mathematical model that links redox chemistry with how cells manage their resources, providing insights into metabolic flexibility.
- The model shows that autotrophs grow more slowly than heterotrophs due to limitations in producing reduced carbon, and it highlights how evolving protein mutations can help maintain redox balance in organisms.
Article Abstract
Microbial metabolism is impressively flexible, enabling growth even when available nutrients differ greatly from biomass in redox state. , for example, rearranges its physiology to grow on reduced and oxidized carbon sources through several forms of fermentation and respiration. To understand the limits on and evolutionary consequences of metabolic flexibility, we developed a mathematical model coupling redox chemistry with principles of cellular resource allocation. Our integrated model clarifies key phenomena, including demonstrating that autotrophs grow slower than heterotrophs because of constraints imposed by intracellular production of reduced carbon. Our model further indicates that growth is improved by adapting the redox state of biomass to nutrients, revealing an unexpected mode of evolution where proteins accumulate mutations benefiting organismal redox balance.
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Source |
|---|---|
| http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10862836 | PMC |
| http://dx.doi.org/10.1101/2024.01.31.578293 | DOI Listing |
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