How genetically modified bacteria learn to play tic-tac-toe

 

     Humans have played tic-tac-toe which is also known as noughts (zero) and crosses with bacteria. E. coli is extensively genetically modified and set up to act as a simple neural network, a form of artificial intelligence.

     According to Alfonso Jaramillo of the Spanish National Research Council, "this is for some uses, such as producing living materials capable of learning to make 'smart' microbiomes." He and his colleagues began with Marionette, a genetically edited strain of E.coli that sensed 12 substances and responded by modifying the activity of whatever genes the researchers picked.  They altered the Marionette strain to have many copies called plasmids, each of which coded for a distinct fluorescent protein: one red and one green.  The ratio of these two plasmids and the colour of the bacteria's fluorescence is not fixed and can be changed by the 12 chemicals and certain antibiotics.

     When bacteria behave similarly to a memristor, an electronic component used to make computer chips that function similarly to synapses in the brain. These creations are known as "memregulons" by scientists. The team came up with the idea of teaching the memregulons how to play tic-tac-toe. 

     The bacteria were cultivated in eight wells that corresponded to the tic-tac-toe grid's outside squares.  

     In The beginning, the bacteria play randomly, But they can be trained by “punishing” wells that play a wrong move with a dose of antibiotics. 

     After eight training games, the bacteria had polished their skills to the point where they could defeat inexperienced humans in simulations. It's an impressive illustration of how a complicated biological system may be adapted to execute a completely artificial goal. 

     Jaramillo's team is using bacteria to create increasingly complex neural networks that can perform activities like handwriting recognition. Bacteria, according to Jaramillo, can perform quite intricate jobs.

Akanksha Joshi,

Microbiol,

RSML