Skip to main content

Thank you for visiting nature.com. You are using a browser version with limited support for CSS. To obtain the best experience, we recommend you use a more up to date browser (or turn off compatibility mode in Internet Explorer). In the meantime, to ensure continued support, we are displaying the site without styles and JavaScript.

  • News & Views
  • Published:

How does a bacterium find its middle?

Nature Structural Biology volume 7, pages 997–999 (2000)Cite this article

Escherichia coli cell division is restricted to the middle of the cell by the MinCDE system. Through complex interactions with MinC and MinD, the MinE protein promotes the correct placement of the cell division apparatus by specifically localizing to the cell center. The first detailed structural analysis of MinE provides key clues to help understand the critical actions of this protein.

This is a preview of subscription content, access via your institution

Relevant articles

Open Access articles citing this article.

Access options

Buy this article

  • Purchase on Springer Link
  • Instant access to full article PDF
Buy now

Prices may be subject to local taxes which are calculated during checkout

Figure 1: Bacterial cell division.
Figure 2: Factors determining the placement of the division site.

References

  1. Rothfield, L., Justice, S. & Garcia-Lara, J. Annu. Rev. Genet. 33, 423– 448 (1999).

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  2. Yu, X.C. & Margolin, W. Mol. Microbiol. 32, 315–326 (1999).

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  3. Sullivan, S.M. & Maddock, J.R. Curr. Biol. 10, R249–252 (2000).

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  4. Jacobs, C. & Shapiro, L. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 96, 5891–5893 ( 1999).

    Article  CAS  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  5. Shapiro, L. & Losick, R. Cell 100 , 89–98 (2000).

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  6. King, G. et al. Nature Struct. Biol. 7, 1013– 1017 (2000).

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  7. Raskin, D.M. & de Boer, P.A. Cell 91, 685–694 (1997).

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  8. Huang, J., Cao, C. & Lutkenhaus, J. J. Bacteriol. 178, 5080– 5085 (1996).

    Article  CAS  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  9. Zhao, C.R., de Boer, P.A. & Rothfield, L.I. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 92, 4313–4317 (1995).

    Article  CAS  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  10. Pichoff, S., Vollrath, B., Touriol, C. & Bouche, J.P. Mol. Microbiol. 18, 321–329 (1995).

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  11. Raskin, D.M. & de Boer, P.A. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 96, 4971–4976 ( 1999).

    Article  CAS  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  12. Raskin, D.M. & de Boer, P.A. J. Bacteriol. 181, 6419–6424 (1999).

    CAS  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  13. Hu, Z. & Lutkenhaus, J. Mol. Microbiol. 34 , 82–90 (1999).

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  14. Rowland, S.L. et al. J. Bacteriol. 182, 613– 619 (2000).

    Article  CAS  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  15. de Boer, P.A., Crossley, R.E., Hand, A.R. & Rothfield, L.I. EMBO J. 10, 4371–4380 ( 1991).

    Article  CAS  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. the Department of Molecular Biology and Microbiology, Tufts Medical School, 136 Harrison Avenue, Boston, 02111, Massachusetts, USA

    Debrabrata RayChaudhuri, G. Scott Gordon & Andrew Wright

Authors
  1. Debrabrata RayChaudhuri
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. G. Scott Gordon
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Andrew Wright
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding authors

Correspondence to G. Scott Gordon or Andrew Wright.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

RayChaudhuri, D., Scott Gordon, G. & Wright, A. How does a bacterium find its middle?. Nat Struct Mol Biol 7, 997–999 (2000). https://doi.org/10.1038/81014

Download citation

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/81014

Search

Advanced search

Quick links

Nature Briefing

Sign up for the Nature Briefing newsletter — what matters in science, free to your inbox daily.

Get the most important science stories of the day, free in your inbox. Sign up for Nature Briefing