Metabolism, cell growth and the bacterial cell cycle.
Adaptation to fluctuations in nutrient availability is a fact of life for single-celled organisms in the 'wild'. A decade ago our understanding of how bacteria adjust cell cycle parameters to accommodate changes in nutrient availability stemmed almost entirely from elegant physiological studies completed in the 1960s. In this Opinion article we summarize recent groundbreaking work in this area and discuss potential mechanisms by which nutrient availability and metabolic status are coordinated with cell growth, chromosome replication and cell division.
Wang
Jue D
JD
Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA. jdwang@bcm.edu
Levin
Petra A
PA
D001412:Bacillus subtilis / Q000166:cytology / Q000254:growth & development / Q000378:metabolism; D002453:Cell Cycle; D018797:Cell Cycle Proteins; D002455:Cell Division; D003470:Culture Media; D004261:DNA Replication; D004926:Escherichia coli / Q000166:cytology / Q000254:growth & development / Q000378:metabolism; D015964:Gene Expression Regulation, Bacterial
D018797:Cell Cycle Proteins; D003470:Culture Media