Division behavior and shape changes in isogenic ftsZ, ftsQ, ftsA, pbpB, and ftsE cell division mutants of Escherichia coli during temperature shift experiments

作者：Peter E.M. Taschner, P. G. Huls, Evelien Pas, Conrad L. Woldringh · 发表于：Journal of Bacteriology · 年份：1988 · DOI：10.1128/jb.170.4.1533-1540.1988 · 被引用次数：154 · 研究领域：Bacterial Genetics and Biotechnology、Escherichia coli research studies、Evolution and Genetic Dynamics

Isogenic ftsZ, ftsQ, ftsA, pbpB, and ftsE cell division mutants of Escherichia coli were compared with their parent strain in temperature shift experiments. To improve detection of phenotypic differences in division behavior and cell shape, the strains were grown in glucose-minimal medium with a decreased osmolality (about 100 mosM). Already at the premissive temperature, all mutants, particularly the pbpB and ftsQ mutants, showed an increased average cell length and cell mass. The pbpB and ftsQ mutants also exhibited a prolonged duration of the constriction period. All strains, except ftsZ, continued to initiate new constrictions at 42 degrees C, suggesting the involvement of FtsZ in an early step of the constriction process. The new constrictions were blunt in ftsQ and more pronounced in ftsA and pbpB filaments, which also had elongated median constrictions. Whereas the latter strains showed a slow recovery of cell division after a shift back to the permissive temperature, ftsZ and ftsQ filaments recovered quickly. Recovery of filaments occurred in all strains by the separation of newborn cells with an average length of two times LO, the length of newborn cells at the permissive temperature. The increased size of the newborn cells could indicate that the cell division machinery recovers too slowly to create normal-sized cells. Our results indicate a phenotypic resemblance between ftsA and pbpB mutants and suggest that the cell division gene products function in the order Ft...