A novel algorithm for enhanced crop productivity
New Delhi(India Science Wire).
Microbes
always exist in communities. They are also used in commercial applications . In industries like
probiotics and biofuels, co-cultivations of these microbes are performed under
controlled conditions for improved yield and productivity of the given product.
These co-cultures are designed randomly based on hit and trial methods.
To quickly ascertain the right combination
and to understand how these microbes interact with in a co-culture,researchesr
from Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Madras have developed and
demonstrated an effective method. The study applies computer-based modelling to
develop novel algorithms to identify metabolic interactions between bacteria.
This understanding may help in identify the perfect combination for a
co-culture.
“There is no rational way to identify the
co-culture to begin with. This is a more rational way of designing the
co-cultures. We will extend the applications to plants productivity too. The
purpose is to enhance the crop yield in lesser time” saysDr.SmitaSrivastava,
Associate Professor, Department of Biotechnology, IIT Madras.
The research shows that many metabolites
act as messengers between the microbes. These messengers are critical to define
how bacteria associate with one another and what combination is best suited for
co-cultures. The interactions also play a significant role in a wide variety of
applications ranging from probiotic design to biofuel production.
According to the researchers one of
theapplications is focused at agriculture industry. It might be able to get
certain metabolites which may be utilised by the plants for its growth. “How
the plant can interact with certain organisms which are known in nature to live
with the plant when we try to exploit that in reactor system, it will help in
over producing that product from the plant” said Dr Srivastava.
The team plans to extend the findings of
this study to investigate interactions in the human gut. Their work was also a
part of a recent collaborative project with Agency for Science, Technology and
Research (A-STAR), Singapore, where their approach provided insights into the
metabolic underpinnings of how the gut recovers following antibiotic treatment.
The algorithm is based on the popular
computer science area called network theory, where the interactions between
different elements define their associations. “Here, we systematically navigate
through the metabolic networks to identify the possible metabolites that can be
exchanged between the bacteria. We then define the associations based on these
metabolic exchanges” said Dr Karthik Raman, Associate Professor, Department of
Biotechnology, IIT Madras.
These metabolites, define the kind of
relationship between the bacteria. The
team devised a new metric called ‘Metabolic Support Index (MSI)’, which helps
to quantify the benefits that an organism receives in a microbial community.
The research work has been published in Computational
and Structural BiotechnologyJournal. The research team comprises Dr, SmitaSrivastava,
Dr Karthik Raman and Dr.AarthiRavikrishnan.
(India Science Wire)
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