Silicon cell model for the central carbohydrate metabolism of the archaeon Sulfolobus solfataricus under temperature variation (P-N-01-09-23)

该项目是一个大型跨欧洲提案的一部分，该提案旨在研究一种特殊类型的微生物在不同温度下生长时会发生什么，使用不同的食物来源。我们对一种名为Sulfolobus solfataricus的微生物感兴趣，这种微生物能够在极端条件下生存，如高温（接近水的沸点）和酸性条件。因此，推动这项研究的有趣问题是，当其他微生物无法生存时，它如何能够在如此极端的条件下生存，以及当条件改变时会发生什么。为了研究硫磺硫化叶菌如何对温度变化做出反应，当在不同类型的食物（例如不同类型的糖）上生长时，我们将专注于细胞内发生的化学反应。特别是，我们将集中在所谓的中央碳水化合物代谢（CCM），它通过许多化学反应将糖转化为能量来生长和维持生命。在这些反应中，蛋白质被制造、修饰和分解。该项目作为欧盟大型联盟的一部分，将在谢菲尔德的菲利普C赖特化学工程实验室进行，具体目的是确定这些蛋白质在变化的温度下何时（时间变化）和变化多少（定量和翻译后修饰）以及它们是否相互作用（蛋白质-蛋白质相互作用）。这一点很重要的原因是蛋白质是细胞中的“行动”分子。该项目的结果将直接用于更广泛的研究，以了解生物体的其他部分如何工作。这些其他部分包括细胞的DNA和其他化学物质，这些化学物质在细胞周围发生反应和移动。总体思路是创建一个计算机模型，描述细胞如何工作，以及所有这些化学物质如何共同作用，使细胞表现出它的行为。这一点很重要，因为在医学和生物技术中，可以在这些极端条件下工作的蛋白质具有巨大的潜力。

This project is part of a large cross-European proposal to investigate what happens to a special type of microorganism when it is grown under different temperatures, using different food sources. We are interested in a microorganism called Sulfolobus solfataricus which is able to survive in extreme conditions such as high temperature (approaching the boiling point of water) and acid conditions. Hence, the interesting question that drives this research is how come it can survive under such extreme conditions, when other microorganisms cannot, and what happens when the conditions change. To investigate how Sulfolobus solfataricus responds to temperature variation, when grown on different types of food (e.g. different types of sugar) we will concentrate on the chemical reactions that occur within the cell. In particular we will concentrate on what is called the central carbohydrate metabolism (CCM) which converts sugar to energy to grow and maintain life via many chemical reactions. During these reactions, proteins are made, modified and broken down. This project, as part of the large EU consortium, which will be conducted in Phillip C Wright's lab in Chemical Engineering at Sheffield, specifically aims to determine when (temporal changes) and by how much these proteins change (quantification and post-translational modification) and whether they interact with each other (protein-protein interactions), under the changing temperatures. The reason this is important is that proteins are the 'doing' molecules in the cells. The results from this programme will feed directly into a wider investigation about how the other parts of the organism work. These other parts include the DNA of the cell and other chemicals that react and move around the cell. The overall idea is to create a computer model that describes how the cell works and how all these chemicals work together to cause the cell to behave how it does. This is important as there is great potential in medicine and biotechnology for proteins that can work in these extreme conditions.