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Macromolecular crowding and the mandatory condensation of DNA in bacteria
Author(s) -
Zimmerman Steven B.,
Murphy Lizabeth D.
Publication year - 1996
Publication title -
febs letters
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.593
H-Index - 257
eISSN - 1873-3468
pISSN - 0014-5793
DOI - 10.1016/0014-5793(96)00725-9
Subject(s) - nucleoid , macromolecular crowding , dna condensation , dna , cytoplasm , bacteria , microbiology and biotechnology , dna replication , macromolecule , biophysics , crowding , circular bacterial chromosome , biology , condensation , chemistry , escherichia coli , genetics , physics , cell culture , gene , transfection , neuroscience , thermodynamics
Cellular DNA in bacteria is localized into nucleoids enclosed by cytoplasm. The forces which cause condensation of the DNA into nucleoids are poorly understood. We suggest that direct and indirect macromolecular crowding forces from the surrounding cytoplasm are critical factors for nucleoid condensation, and that within a bacterial cell these crowding forces are always present at such high levels that the DNA is maintained in a condensed state. The DNA affected includes not only the preexisting genomic DNA but also DNA that is newly introduced by viral infection, replication or other means.