EVE

EVE implements a morbidostat-like feedback system that dynamically adjusts antibiotic concentration to perform experimental evolution studies of bacterial populations, including Escherichia coli under chloramphenicol, to investigate the development of antibiotic resistance.

Key Features:

• Automatic Adjustment of Antibiotic Concentration: Implements morbidostat-like automatic modulation of antibiotic levels in response to measured bacterial growth dynamics.
• Continuous Growth Monitoring and Dynamic Dosing: Continuously monitors bacterial growth and iteratively adjusts antibiotic concentrations to maintain selective pressure.
• Experimental Validation with Replicate Populations: Validated by evolving replicate Escherichia coli populations under chloramphenicol and comparing results to existing literature.
• Automated Selection Regime: Provides an automated iterative selection process that simulates evolutionary pressures driving antibiotic resistance.

Scientific Applications:

• Study of Antibiotic Resistance Evolution: Enables controlled experimental evolution to investigate how bacterial populations, such as Escherichia coli, develop resistance to antibiotics like chloramphenicol.
• Mechanistic Investigation of Resistance Development: Facilitates testing hypotheses about mechanisms and trajectories of resistance emergence by comparing evolved populations to published data.
• Simulation of Dynamic Selection Pressures: Allows observation of adaptation under dynamically adjusted drug concentrations to model fluctuating selective environments.

Methodology:

The system continuously monitors bacterial growth and iteratively adjusts antibiotic concentrations during experimental evolution of bacteria (e.g., Escherichia coli exposed to chloramphenicol).