Journal
PROCEEDINGS OF THE NATIONAL ACADEMY OF SCIENCES OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
Volume 108, Issue 9, Pages 3773-3778Publisher
NATL ACAD SCIENCES
DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1018674108
Keywords
cytokinesis; cytoskeleton; DNA replication; cell cycle
Categories
Funding
- National Institutes of Health (NIH) [GM57059, AI083365, AI069007, AI057754]
- Massachusetts Life Science Center
- Burroughs Wellcome Fund
Ask authors/readers for more resources
The tubulin-like FtsZ protein initiates assembly of the bacterial cytokinetic machinery by polymerizing into a ring structure, the Z ring, at the prospective site of division. To block Z-ring formation over the nucleoid and help coordinate cell division with chromosome segregation, Escherichia coli employs the nucleoid-associated division inhibitor, SlmA. Here, we investigate the mechanism by which SlmA regulates FtsZ assembly. We show that SlmA disassembles FtsZ polymers in vitro. In addition, using chromatin immunoprecipitation (ChIP), we identified 24 SlmA-binding sequences (SBSs) on the chromosome. Remarkably, SlmA binding to SBSs dramatically enhanced its ability to interfere with FtsZ polymerization, and ChIP studies indicate that SlmA regulates FtsZ assembly at these sites in vivo. Because of the dynamic and highly organized nature of the chromosome, coupling SlmA activation to specific DNA binding provides a mechanism for the precise spatiotemporal control of its anti-FtsZ activity within the cell.
Authors
I am an author on this paper
Click your name to claim this paper and add it to your profile.
Reviews
Recommended
No Data Available