Analysis of robustness of metabolic networks focusing on environmental dependency of gene knockouts

对基因-表型相关性的系统研究表明，大多数单基因敲除突变体在实验室条件下的生长过程中往往没有可观察到的表型。然而，这类研究主要考察了有限数量的条件下的表型，如葡萄糖和LB介质。如果基因的功能依赖于环境条件，那么在一种条件下不表现出表型的基因可能会在不同的特定条件下表现出表型变化。为了阐明基因的环境依赖性，我们分析了从表型芯片获得的野生型和单基因敲除突变体在1920培养条件下的生长数据。此外，我们还建立了一个包括葡萄糖转运系统和甘油转运系统的大肠杆菌中心代谢动力学模型。

Systematic studies of genotype-phenotype correlation have revealed that most single- knockout mutants often show no observable phenotype during growth under laboratory conditions. However, such studies have mainly examined phenotypes under a limited number of conditions such as Glucose and LB mediums. Genes showing no phenotypes when absent under one condition may exhibit phenotypic changes under different specific conditions, if the gene function depends on environmental conditions. To elucidate the environmental dependency of genes, we analyzed growth data of wild-type and single-knockout mutant in Escherichia coli in 1920 medium conditions obtained from the Phenotype MicroArray. Furthermore, we develop a kinetic model for the central metabolism of E. coli that includes not only the glucose transport system, but also the glycerol transport system.