Exobiology Through the Lens of Constraint-Based Metabolic Modeling

Broddrick, Jared T ; Parenteau, Mary N

关键词: EXOBIOLOGY;    BIOCHEMISTRY;    GEOCHEMISTRY;    METABOLISM;    MICROORGANISMS;    PHOTOSYNTHESIS;    MATHEMATICAL MODELS;    HABITABILITY;    BIOLOGICAL EVOLUTION;   

RP-ID  :  ARC-E-DAA-TN70034

学科分类：生物科学（综合）

美国|英语

来源: NASA Technical Reports Server

【 摘 要 】

A focus of many astrobiology questions resides on the interplay between biochemistry and geochemistry. This biotic-abiotic interface is intimately connected to habitability. Computational systems biology provides a paradigm to characterize this interface. Here we describe the application of constraint-based metabolic modeling to characterize photosynthetic microorganisms inhabiting a modern analog to the Earth’s primordial ocean. Biochemistry is captured in a metabolic network that is converted to a mathematical model. Geochemistry results in constraints that limit the capabilities of the metabolic network. The combination of the two within a single framework can elucidate the co-evolution of life and the environment.