(711g) Metabolic Mechanisms of Interaction in Cellular Communities

Metabolic interactions among species are ubiquitous in nature, and the fitness costs and benefits they impose often reinforce and stabilize them over time. These interactions are of particular importance in the human gut, where they have functions ranging from enhancing digestion to preventing (or exacerbating) infections. The diversity and sheer number of species present lead to the potential for a multitude of metabolic interactions among species to occur. However, identifying the mechanism and consequences of metabolic interactions between even two species is incredibly challenging. We’re working to model, apply, and experimentally test potential metabolic mechanisms associated with interspecies interactions. We have tested these approaches with the altered Schaedler flora, a defined community of relevance in the mouse gut. These approaches may enable the characterization of metabolic dependencies that can be modulated to engineer cellular communities towards specific objectives for industrial and biomedical applications.