Metabolic constraints drive self-organization of specialized cell groups

• DOI: 10.7554/elife.46735
• Publication Date: 2019-06-26T12:00:19Z
• Authors: Sriram Varahan; Adhish Walvekar; Vaibhhav Sinha; Sandeep Krishna; Sunil Laxman
• Keywords: 0301 basic medicine; 0303 health sciences; cell states; QH301-705.5; Science; Q; pentose phosphate pathway; R; Trehalose; Cell Biology; Saccharomyces cerevisiae; yeast; self-organization; Models, Biological; 03 medical and health sciences; gluconeogenesis; Medicine; Biology (General); trehalose

How phenotypically distinct states in isogenic cell populations appear and stably co-exist remains unresolved. We find that within a mature, clonal yeast colony developing low glucose, cells arrange into metabolically disparate groups. Using this system, we model experimentally identify metabolic constraints sufficient to drive such self-assembly. Beginning uniformly gluconeogenic state, exhibiting contrary, high pentose phosphate pathway activity spontaneously proliferate, spatially constrained manner. Gluconeogenic the produce provide resource, which as trehalose. Above threshold concentrations of external trehalose, switch new state proliferate. A self-organized system establishes, where are sustained by trehalose consumption, thereby restrains other producing, state. Our work suggests simple physico-chemical principles determine how self-organize structured assemblies complimentary, specialized states.