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New genes with old modus operandi
Author(s) -
Dasgupta Santanu,
MaisnierPatin Sophie,
Nordström Kurt
Publication year - 2000
Publication title -
embo reports
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 4.584
H-Index - 184
eISSN - 1469-3178
pISSN - 1469-221X
DOI - 10.1093/embo-reports/kvd077
Subject(s) - nucleoid , biology , chromosome segregation , cell division , genetics , circular bacterial chromosome , chromosome , dna replication , microbiology and biotechnology , mitosis , gene , dna , escherichia coli , cell
The process of partitioning bacterial sister chromosomes into daughter cells seems to be distinct from chromatid segregation during eukaryotic mitosis. In Escherichia coli , partitioning starts soon after initiation of replication, when the two newly replicated oriC s move from the cell centre to quarter positions within the cell. As replication proceeds, domains of the compact, supercoiled chromosome are locally decondensed ahead of the replication fork. The nascent daughter chromosomes are recondensed and moved apart through the concerted activities of topoisomerases and the SeqA (sequestration) and MukB (chromosome condensation) proteins, all of which modulate nucleoid superhelicity. Thus, genes involved in chromosome topology, once set aside as ‘red herrings’ in the search for ‘true’ partition functions, are again recognized as being important for chromosome partitioning in E. coli .