Abstract 1355 Investigating epigenetic encoding of long-term memory of 5-keto-D-gluconate exposure in Escherichia coli

We have recently identified a memory phenotype in Escherichia coli, where cells previously exposed to the rare and poorly utilized carbon source 5-keto-D-gluconate (KDG) outcompete KDG-naïve cells even after outgrowth in glucose for six doublings; the memory eventually dissipates over time scales of roughly one day1. This memory phenotype was found when we tested specifically dissociating a heterochromatin-like region (which we term an extended protein occupancy domain, or EPOD, located on the idn gene cluster, which encodes for the proteins responsible for KDG metabolism.