Gene Regulation, Phenotypic Memory, and Selection in Fluctuating Environments

The evolutionary conditions that select for and maintain gene regulatory networks have remained elusive despite substantial advances in understanding the molecular mechanisms of gene regulation. In this talk I will present our experiments assessing the evolutionary costs and benefits of gene regulation in bacteria under metabolic fluctuations. We investigate the role of phenotypic memory in shaping responses to metabolic fluctuations. We use a combination of microfluidics, classical microbiology assays, barcode sequencing, and biophysical modeling to analyze the advantage of gene regulation and measure the strength of selection on phenotypic memory in fluctuating environments.