e96100 Corkrey.pdf (1.8 MB)
Protein thermodynamics can be predicted directly from biological growth rates
journal contribution
posted on 2023-05-18, 00:13 authored by Stephen CorkreyStephen Corkrey, Thomas McMeekinThomas McMeekin, John BowmanJohn Bowman, David RatkowskyDavid Ratkowsky, Olley, J, Thomas RossThomas RossLife on Earth is capable of growing from temperatures well below freezing to above the boiling point of water, with some organisms preferring cooler and others hotter conditions. The growth rate of each organism ultimately depends on its intracellular chemical reactions. Here we show that a thermodynamic model based on a single, rate-limiting, enzyme-catalysed reaction accurately describes population growth rates in 230 diverse strains of unicellular and multicellular organisms. Collectively these represent all three domains of life, ranging from psychrophilic to hyperthermophilic, and including the highest temperature so far observed for growth (122°C). The results provide credible estimates of thermodynamic properties of proteins and obtain, purely from organism intrinsic growth rate data, relationships between parameters previously identified experimentally, thus bridging a gap between biochemistry and whole organism biology. We find that growth rates of both unicellular and multicellular life forms can be described by the same temperature dependence model. The model results provide strong support for a single highly-conserved reaction present in the last universal common ancestor (LUCA). This is remarkable in that it means that the growth rate dependence on temperature of unicellular and multicellular life forms that evolved over geological time spans can be explained by the same model.
History
Publication title
PLoS OneVolume
9Issue
5Article number
e96100Number
e96100Pagination
1-15ISSN
1932-6203Department/School
Tasmanian Institute of Agriculture (TIA)Publisher
Public Library of SciencePlace of publication
United States of AmericaRights statement
Copyright 2014 The Authors-This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License,(CC BY 3.0 AU) which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.Repository Status
- Open