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DiSCUS: A Simulation Platform for Conjugation Computing

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Unconventional Computation and Natural Computation (UCNC 2015)

Part of the book series: Lecture Notes in Computer Science ((LNTCS,volume 9252))

Abstract

In bacterial populations, cells are able to cooperate in order to yield complex collective functionalities. Interest in population-level cellular behaviour is increasing, due to both our expanding knowledge of the underlying biological principles, and the growing range of possible applications for engineered microbial consortia. The ability of cells to interact through small signalling molecules (a mechanism known as quorum sensing) is the basis for the majority of existing engineered systems. However, horizontal gene transfer (or conjugation) offers the possibility of cells exchanging messages (using DNA) that are much more information-rich. The potential of engineering this conjugation mechanism to suit specific goals will guide future developments in this area. Motivated by a lack of computational models for examining the specific dynamics of conjugation, we present a simulation framework for its further study.

(This paper was first presented at the Spatial Computing Workshop of the 13th International Conference on Autonomous Agents and Multiagent Systems (AAMAS), Paris, France, May 5–9 2014. There were no published proceedings).

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Acknowledgments

This work was supported by the European Commission FP7 Future and Emerging Technologies Proactive initiative: Bio-chemistry-based Information Technology (CHEM-IT, ICT-2009.8.3), project reference 248919 (BACTOCOM).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Systems Biology Program, Centro Nacional de Biotecnología, Madrid, Spain

    Angel Goñi-Moreno

  2. Informatics Research Centre, School of Computing, Mathematics and Digital Technology, Manchester Metropolitan University, Manchester, UK

    Martyn Amos

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  1. Angel Goñi-Moreno
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Correspondence to Martyn Amos .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand

    Cristian S. Calude

  2. University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand

    Michael J. Dinneen

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Goñi-Moreno, A., Amos, M. (2015). DiSCUS: A Simulation Platform for Conjugation Computing. In: Calude, C., Dinneen, M. (eds) Unconventional Computation and Natural Computation. UCNC 2015. Lecture Notes in Computer Science(), vol 9252. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-21819-9_13

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-21819-9_13

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  • Publisher Name: Springer, Cham

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  • Online ISBN: 978-3-319-21819-9

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