title: Oscillating global regulators control the genetic circuit driving a bacterial cell cycle.
abstract: A newly identified cell-cycle master regulator protein, GcrA, together with the CtrA master regulator, are key components of a genetic circuit that drives cell-cycle progression and asymmetric polar morphogenesis in Caulobacter crescentus. The circuit drives out-of-phase temporal and spatial oscillation of GcrA and CtrA concentrations, producing time- and space-dependent transcriptional regulation of modular functions that implement cell-cycle processes. The CtrA/GcrA regulatory circuit controls expression of polar differentiation factors and the timing of DNA replication. CtrA functions as a silencer of the replication origin and GcrA as an activator of components of the replisome and the segregation machinery.
authors.affiliation: Department of Developmental Biology, School of Medicine, Beckman Center, Stanford University, Stanford, CA 94305, USA.
authors.forename: Julia
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Holtzendorff
authors.forename: Dean
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Hung
authors.forename: Peter
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Brende
authors.forename: Ann
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Reisenauer
authors.forename: Patrick H
authors.initials: PH
authors.lastname: Viollier
authors.forename: Harley H
authors.initials: HH
authors.lastname: McAdams
authors.forename: Lucy
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Shapiro
mesh_terms: D001426:Bacterial Proteins / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D016935:Caulobacter crescentus / Q000166:cytology* / Q000235:genetics* / Q000254:growth & development / Q000378:metabolism; D002453:Cell Cycle / Q000235:genetics*; D004261:DNA Replication; D004268:DNA-Binding Proteins / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D020869:Gene Expression Profiling; D015964:Gene Expression Regulation, Bacterial; D020868:Gene Silencing; D005798:Genes, Bacterial; D020043:Genes, Essential; D020411:Oligonucleotide Array Sequence Analysis; D011401:Promoter Regions, Genetic; D018741:Replication Origin; D014157:Transcription Factors / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D014158:Transcription, Genetic
chemical_list: D001426:Bacterial Proteins; C097706:CtrA protein, Caulobacter; D004268:DNA-Binding Proteins; D014157:Transcription Factors