Social Systems Microbiology

Welcome to the Social Systems Microbiology group!

Our Research:

Are you fascinated by the hidden world of bacteria and their complex social interactions? Our research group dives deep into the molecular biology and evolution of how bacteria interact, focusing on the intriguing dynamics of conflict, manipulation, sharing, and dependencies among bacteria, plasmids, and phages.

We are particularly interested in the role of horizontal gene transfer, which is the sharing of genes between bacteria, and how this affects their interactions. A major concern is the rise in antibiotic resistance among harmful bacteria, which is a frightening result of this rampant gene-sharing process. Genes are usually shared via mobile genetic elements like plasmids and bacteriophages. We study how these elements interact with each other and with the host, as well as how these interactions influence the social behavior of the host bacteria.

Our Cutting-Edge Techniques:

To test our hypotheses, we develop advanced molecular tools and engineer bacteria using:

  • Genome Engineering (e.g., CRISPR-Cas)
  • Synthetic Biology
  • Fluorescence Reporter Gene Technologies
  • Flow cytometry and Cell Sorting
  • Confocal Microscopy
  • High-Throughput Sequencing
  • Single Cell Transcriptomics
  • Advanced Microbiology Methods

These methods allow us to study bacteria at the single-cell level, revealing that even genetically identical bacteria, plasmids, and phages can exhibit complex social behaviors like cooperation, altruism, division of labor, and bet-hedging.

Join Us!
If you're a student looking for an exciting research or thesis project (BSc or MSc), we invite you to contact IP Jonas Stenløkke Madsen. Here are some of the fascinating topics you could explore with us:

  • Cooperative antibiotic resistance
  • Division of labor and bet-hedging in clonal populations
  • Phage therapy and evolutionary medicine
  • Phage and plasmid manipulation of their hosts via intracellular signaling
  • Plasmid-host crosstalk and transfer of antibiotic resistance genes
  • Bioinformatic analysis (e.g. of single-cell transcriptomics/genomics)

Read more Click here

 

Exploiting evolution: Designing microbial interactions for industrial scenarios.

This project will address the use of microbial communities to maintain increased food and energy production in an environmentally friendly and sustainable way.

We are planning to isolate and identify microbial communities (bacteria or fungi)  to construct synthetic microbial consortia to help in bio-industrial processes and support Europe’s developing bio-economy.

A project may include:
Microcosms enrichment
Fluorescent activated cell sorting
Classic culturing
Enzymes activities
PCR and qPCR analysis
Metagenome and metatranscriptome
sequencing
Bioinformatic analysis

Keywords:  Next generation
sequencing, bioinformatics, bio-industry

Supervisor: Søren Sørensen
Email: sjs@bio.ku.dk

 

 

Horizontal gene transfer
- Spread of antibiotic resistance -

Increased antibiotic resistance in a wide range of human pathogens is a growing public health threat. This rapid spread of antibiotic resistance genes is mediated by mobile genetic elements like plasmids, which can be rapidly transferred between microorganisms.

We study plasmid transfer in various natural environments such as wastewater, soil and
animal model systems.

A project may include:
Microcosms / Animal model systems
Genetically engineering
Fluorescent activated cell sorting
Metagenome sequencing
Bioinformatic analysis

Supervisor:   Søren Sørensen
Email:   sjs@bio.ku.dk