Multiscale Mathematical Modelling of Bacterial Quorum Sensing #

Molly Brennan, Mohit Dalwadi, Philip Pearce

Poster session

Abstract #

Quorum sensing refers to the ability of cells to communicate via small diffusible molecules, called autoinducers, allowing them to coordinate group behaviour. This phenomenon has largely been observed in bacterial populations, controlling mass phenotypic changes such as the production of virulence factors, biofilm formation, bioluminescence and competence for DNA uptake. The quorum sensing system within each cell involves a number of regulatory systems and and feedback loops, and it is often not clear how each gene-regulatory component contributes to population-level function. Moreover, it is prohibitively computationally expensive to include bacterial (microscale) regions of activity over the colony scale (macroscale). To assist in linking microscopic and macroscopic processes in quorum sensing, multi-scale asymptotic techniques can be used to derive effective equations for experimentally measurable quantities through homogenisation. In this poster, I present some of the aspects of bacterial quorum sensing I will investigate throughout my PhD using these techniques; this includes homogenisation of the quorum sensing system in gram positive bacteria and experimentally observed phenotypic heterogeneity in quorum sensing.