Physiology, fast and slow: bacterial response to variable resource stoichiometry and dilution rate

Logan M. Peoples, Jana Isanta-Navarro, Benedicta Bras, Brian K. Hand, Frank Rosenzweig, James J. Elser, Matthew J. Church

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

Abstract

Microorganisms grow despite imbalances in the availability of nutrients and energy. The biochemical and elemental adjustments that bacteria employ to sustain growth when these resources are suboptimal are not well understood. We assessed how Pseudomonas putida KT2440 adjusts its physiology at differing dilution rates (to approximate growth rates) in response to carbon (C), nitrogen (N), and phosphorus (P) stress using chemostats. Cellular elemental and biomolecular pools were variable in response to different limiting resources at a slow dilution rate of 0.12 h−1, but these pools were more similar across treatments at a faster rate of 0.48 h−1. At slow dilution rates, limitation by P and C appeared to alter cell growth efficiencies as reflected by changes in cellular C quotas and rates of oxygen consumption, both of which were highest under P- and lowest under C- stress. Underlying these phenotypic changes was differential gene expression of terminal oxidases used for ATP generation that allows for increased energy generation efficiency. In all treatments under fast dilution rates, KT2440 formed aggregates and biofilms, a physiological response that hindered an accurate assessment of growth rate, but which could serve as a mechanism that allows cells to remain in conditions where growth is favorable. Our findings highlight the ways that microorganisms dynamically adjust their physiology under different resource supply conditions, with distinct mechanisms depending on the limiting resource at slow growth and convergence toward an aggregative phenotype with similar compositions under conditions that attempt to force fast growth.

Original languageEnglish
JournalmSystems
Volume9
Issue number8
DOIs
StatePublished - Aug 1 2024

Keywords

  • Pseudomonas putida
  • bacteria
  • growth rate
  • resource limitation
  • stoichiometry
  • transcriptomics

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