title: Sequential establishment of stripe patterns in an expanding cell population.
abstract: Periodic stripe patterns are ubiquitous in living organisms, yet the underlying developmental processes are complex and difficult to disentangle. We describe a synthetic genetic circuit that couples cell density and motility. This system enabled programmed Escherichia coli cells to form periodic stripes of high and low cell densities sequentially and autonomously. Theoretical and experimental analyses reveal that the spatial structure arises from a recurrent aggregation process at the front of the continuously expanding cell population. The number of stripes formed could be tuned by modulating the basal expression of a single gene. The results establish motility control as a simple route to establishing recurrent structures without requiring an extrinsic pacemaker.
authors: Department of Biochemistry, The University of Hong Kong, Pokfulam, Hong Kong, China.
authors: Chenli
authors: C
authors: Liu
authors: Xiongfei
authors: X
authors: Fu
authors: Lizhong
authors: L
authors: Liu
authors: Xiaojing
authors: X
authors: Ren
authors: Carlos K L
authors: CK
authors: Chau
authors: Sihong
authors: S
authors: Li
authors: Lu
authors: L
authors: Xiang
authors: Hualing
authors: H
authors: Zeng
authors: Guanhua
authors: G
authors: Chen
authors: Lei-Han
authors: LH
authors: Tang
authors: Peter
authors: P
authors: Lenz
authors: Xiaodong
authors: X
authors: Cui
authors: Wei
authors: W
authors: Huang
authors: Terence
authors: T
authors: Hwa
authors: Jian-Dong
authors: JD
authors: Huang
mesh_terms: D054742:Acyl-Butyrolactones / Q000378:metabolism; D058491:Bacterial Load; D049109:Cell Proliferation; D003470:Culture Media; D004058:Diffusion; D048168:Escherichia coli K12 / Q000166:cytology / Q000235:genetics / Q000254:growth & development* / Q000502:physiology*; D015964:Gene Expression Regulation, Bacterial; D053263:Gene Regulatory Networks; D007700:Kinetics; D008954:Models, Biological; D009068:Movement; D053038:Quorum Sensing; D058615:Synthetic Biology
chemical_list: D054742:Acyl-Butyrolactones; D003470:Culture Media