Cooperative warfare in microbes

Current understanding of social behaviour in microbes comes from lab experiments. While these experiments have been extremely useful as experimental systems for testing social evolution theory, they do not tell us very much at all about the adaptation of social behaviour in microbes in natural populations. For example, microbes outside the lab live in highly competitive, complex communities with selection pressure to compete effectively with other strains and species.

One competitive strategy adopted by bacteria is the production of anti-bacterial toxins, or bacteriocins, to which producers are immune. The production of these toxins can be considered to be a social trait, as they are costly to produce but benefit clonemates by reducing relative fitness of competitors. However, there are several features of toxin production, which are likely to have important implications for adaptation to the social environment, which we do not yet understand (1) bacteriocin production and resistance are often linked together on plasmids that are capable of horizontal transfer; (2) bacteriocin production is often facultatively expressed in response to the presence of other strains; and (3) toxins vary widely in specificity of their targets. The aim of this project is to investigate the implications of features such as these for the maintenance of bacteriocin production and the implications for microbial coexistence in nature.

There will be opportunities to take the project in a more applied direction, complementing current projects in my lab on bacteriocin production in Pseudomonas aeruginosa infections of the cystic fibrosis lung, or to focus more generally on the development of bacteriocin production as a model system for studying the evolution of conflict and conflict resolution in nature. There will also be the opportunity to combine both empirical and theoretical approaches, depending on particular interests.

To apply please do so using the online application system at: http://www.ox.ac.uk/admissions/postgraduate_courses/apply/. Please submit a personal statement rather than a research proposal. Please remember to quote the studentship reference code DTG4. Any queries please contact [Email Address Removed]. The closing date is Friday 20th January 2012.