NSF/MCB-BSF: Elucidating the transient contact-dependent molecular trade in multispecies bacterial communities

在室外，动物和植物上，以及肠道中，到处都可以发现各种各样的细菌。因此，细菌群落在这些不同环境中的行为和活动影响到许多行业，包括农业、废水处理、生物技术和医药。这个合作项目的重点是最近的一项发现，即两个相互接触的细菌细胞可以共享一些材料。通过推导出这种依赖于接触的分子交换的规则和限制，研究人员可以学习利用这一过程来使细菌群落更好地工作。这一NSF-BSF项目将为研究生和本科生提供跨学科培训，以及了解以色列科学界和研究的跨文化机会。作为对公众的宣传，研究人员将使用该项目中引人注目的细胞生物学照片，在非正式活动中启动关于科学的对话，与当地成年人和家庭讨论科学。最后，讲座的新部分将为年轻学生提供科学交流的实践。细菌生活在野外的多物种群落中；然而，物种间接触的分子后果几乎没有被探索过。越来越多的数据表明，邻近的细菌可以以接触依赖的方式交换蛋白质和代谢物。这种交换被证明可以引发新的表型，但管理这种现象的范围和规则尚未揭示。这个NSF-BSF合作项目旨在提供第一个全面的关于细菌物种间接触时发生的非遗传性分子交换的观点。首先，研究人员将调查相邻细胞之间是否存在RNA交换，这将扩大这一现象的范围。这一目标还将导致开发用于RNA跟踪和标记的新型合成生物学工具。其次，研究人员将对来自混合物种培养的受体细胞进行全球转录和蛋白质组学分析，以确定从一个物种传递到另一个物种的RNA和蛋白质的范围和特性。这一目标的分析还将有助于建立管理RNA和蛋白质交换的规则或序列条形码。第三，研究人员将使用系统范围的和有针对性的方法来评估接触依赖的分子交换对基因调控和信号传递的影响。所有这些目标将伴随着对细胞间纳米管对这些事件的影响和贡献的研究。预计这项双物种系统模式研究的结果和方法将为阐明更复杂的社区提供一个框架。这项美国和以色列的合作项目得到了美国国家科学基金会和以色列双国科学基金会的支持。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的智力优势和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

Diverse bacteria are found everywhere outside, on animals and plants, as well as in the gut. Thus, the behavior and activity of bacterial communities in these varied environment affects many industries, including agriculture, wastewater treatment, biotech, and medicine. This collaborative project focuses on the recent discovery that two bacterial cells that touch each other can share some materials. By deriving the rules and limits for this contact-dependent molecular exchange, the investigators could learn to harness this process to make bacterial communities work better. This NSF-BSF project will provide cross-disciplinary training for graduate and undergraduate students, as well as cross-cultural opportunities to learn about the science community and research in Israel. As outreach to the general public, the investigators will use striking cell biology photos from the project to jump-start conversations about science at informal events to discuss science with local adults and families. Finally, a new part of a lecture course will provide younger students with practice in science communication.Bacteria reside in multispecies communities in the wild; however, the molecular consequences of interspecies contact have been hardly explored. Accumulating data indicate that neighboring bacteria can exchange proteins and metabolites in a contact-dependent manner. This exchange is shown to elicit new phenotypes, but the scope and rules governing this phenomenon are unrevealed. This NSF-BSF collaborative project aims to provide the first comprehensive view of non-hereditary molecular exchange occurring upon bacterial interspecies contact. First, researchers will investigate whether RNAs are exchanged between neighboring cells, which would expand the scope of this phenomenon. This aim also will lead to development of novel synthetic biology tools for RNA tracking and tagging. Second, researchers will perform global transcriptomic and proteomic analysis of recipient cells from mixed-species cultures in order to determine the extent and identities of RNAs and proteins that are delivered from one species to the other. The analysis in this aim also will help to establish rules or sequence barcodes that govern RNA and protein exchange. Third, researchers will use both systemwide and targeted approaches to evaluate the effects of contact-dependent molecular exchange on gene regulation and signaling. All these aims will be accompanied with the study of the impact and the contribution of intercellular nanotubes to these events. It is expected that the results and methodologies from this study of model dual-species systems will provide a framework for elucidating more complex communities.This collaborative US/Israel project is supported by the US National Science Foundation and the Israeli Binational Science Foundation.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.