Single-Cell Biophysics: Measurement, Modulation, and Modeling

Single-Cell Biophysics: Measurement, Modulation, and Modeling

Poster Abstracts

92-POS Board 46 Investigation of Metabolic Regulation of Cell Growth and Division in Escherichia Coli Chung Kang Wang 1 , Chung Hsien Hung 1 , Yu Ling Shih 1,2,3 . 1 Institute of Biological Chemistry, Academia Sinica, Taipei City, Taiwan, 2 Institute of Biochemical Sciences, National Taiwan University, Taipei City, Taiwan, 3 Department of Microbiology, College of Medicine, National Taiwan University, Taipei City, Taiwan. 6-Phosphofructokinase I (PFK I, encoded by pfkA ) is a key enzyme of the glycolysis pathway that catalyzes the irreversible conversion of fructose 6-phosphate to fructose 1,6-bisphosphate thereby regulating the energy production in Escherichia coli . Interestingly, our recent study suggested that membrane association of PFK I was regulated by the Min system, a protein machine that mediates placement of the division septum at the midcell, through direct protein- protein interaction. We therefore set out to investigate the role of PFK I in cell growth and division by analyzing the wild-type, ΔpfkA and Δpgi cells cultured in the presence of different carbon sources. The examined phenotypes include cell morphology and dimension, as well as positioning of the FtsZ ring that plays a critical role in septal wall growth prior to cell division. Our results showed strong correlations between PFK I and the cell size control. Meanwhile, we found that oscillation of the Min system could be tuned by nutrient availability that controls the energy status in cells. We are currently investigating the underlying mechanisms that mediate the metabolic regulation of cell size, morphology, Min oscillation and the interplay between them.

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