Dilution and the theoretical description of growth-rate dependent gene expression

Expression of a gene is not only tuned by direct regulation, but also affected by the global physiological state of the (host) cell. This global dependence complicates the quantitative understanding of gene regulation and the design of synthetic gene circuits. In bacteria these global effects can often be described as a dependence on the growth rate. Here we discuss how growth-rate dependence can be incorporated in mathematical models of gene expression by comparing data for unregulated genes with the predictions of different theoretical descriptions of growth-rate dependence. We argue that a realistic description of growth effects requires a growth-rate dependent protein synthesis rate in addition to dilution by growth.