Mechanisms of Radiation Resistance in Deinococcus radiodurans R1 Revealed by the Reconstruction of Gene Regulatory Network Using Bayesian Network Approach

Abstract

The mechanisms of radiation resistance in the extreme anti-radiation bacterium Deinococcus radiodurans R1 have fascinated researchers for more than sixty years. In this study, with the DNA microarray data, we first constructed the gene regulatory network in D. radiodurans R1 using Bayesian network approach. The results of our analysis for the gene regulatory network reveal twelve significant mechanisms of radiation resistance in D. radiodurans R1, of which two mechanisms (DNA repair and reactive oxygen species) are consistent with the wellknown knowledge; and two mechanisms (metal ion homeostasis and oxygen transport process) support Daly’s manganese-based radiation protection hypothesis. We also demonstrate that different mechanisms act in concert under the radiation stress in D. radiodurans R1.