IIT Madras research improves understanding of inter-organ communication

Researchers develop computational approach to study interactions between genes responsible for inter-organ communication

Don't want to miss the best from Business Standard?

Scientists at Indian Institute of Technology Madras (IIT Madras) have developed a computational approach to understand interactions between genes responsible for inter-organ communication in the human body.

Communication among cells in tissues and organs is pivotal to multicellular life. The molecular basis of such communication has long been studied, but genome research on signalling between tissues was lacking.

To identify inter-tissue mediators, researchers at the institute’s Robert Bosch Centre for Data Science and Artificial Intelligence (RBC-DSAI) developed ‘MultiCens’ (Multilayer/Multi-tissue network Centrality measures). Information exchange between organs and tissues of the body is critical for the proper functioning and survival of all living organisms. Inter-organ communication network (ICN) allows organisms to adapt to changes in their environment, assess their energy reserves, and maintain overall well-being. The research represents a significant advance in the development of methods to understand inter-organ communication and its implications, said IIT Madras.

“The importance of our MultiCens method lies in its ability to identify the key genes in the ICN in various healthy or disease conditions. At the heart of MultiCens are network science algorithms that quantify the importance of genes within a tissue as well as across multiple tissues in a hierarchical fashion. This method was developed as a focused team effort, with especially close interactions between the members in the bioinformatics and integrative data science (BIRDS) lab,” said Manikandan Narayanan, faculty in the Department of Computer Science and Engineering at IIT Madras.

Many molecules and gut microbiota produce metabolites that serve as messengers in the ICN process. Metabolites shape decisions such as growth, survival, and death of cells. Previous studies, mostly conducted on model organisms like fruit flies, have revealed highly complex ICNs.

The research paper was co-authored by IIT Madras researchers Tarun Kumar, Sanga Mitra, B Ravindran and Narayanan, along with Intel Corporation’s Ramanathan Sethuraman, who collaborated together with the IIT Madras team.

 “Using algorithms for computing multi-layer network centrality measures, which are extended from traditional single-layer network centrality algorithms, we examined the relationships among genes that interact within and between tissues, and identified the key genes involved in communication between different parts of the body,” Kumar said.