Kurzfassung

Cationic toxicity is involved in a substantial number of biological phenomena, such as salt stress in crops and many human diseases. The yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae is a remarkably versatile model system with a myriad of biotechnological applications that fulfils all the criteria essential for a Systems Biology approach. In this organism, maintenance of cation homeostasis is an essential process that affects physiological parameters such as membrane potential, intracellular pH, cell volume...Cationic toxicity is involved in a substantial number of biological phenomena, such as salt stress in crops and many human diseases. The yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae is a remarkably versatile model system with a myriad of biotechnological applications that fulfils all the criteria essential for a Systems Biology approach. In this organism, maintenance of cation homeostasis is an essential process that affects physiological parameters such as membrane potential, intracellular pH, cell volume and that directly influences nutrient uptake and growth.


The aim of the present project is to capitalize on all the tools and experience in the previous Translucent project to further expand modelling of cation homeostasis including not only potassium, but other cations such as sodium, as well as intracellular compartments (vacuole, nucleus, mitochondria). The final goal is the understanding of the mechanisms of homeostasis for the major cations, their interaction with other cellular processes (i.e. cell cycle, metabolism) and the limitations of the system. This knowledge will have a relevant impact not only in yeast biology, but also for other microorganisms or even for plants and animals. We plan to approach this biological problem by using existing models or generating new ones and testing them by means of specific experimental approaches. New sets of data will serve to refine the models, whose predictions will be experimentally tested. Essentially, iterative cycles of modelling and data generation will progressively increase our knowledge on cation homeostasis and allow better predictions.


The specific objectives of the project are:

Biophysical and thermodynamic modelling of Potassium/Sodium Homeostasis
Modelling the regulation of specific transporters
Defining the relationship between metabolism and ion homeostasis
Stochastic spatio-temporal modelling taking into account compartments» weiterlesen» einklappen