Cell Reports
Volume 1, Issue 5, 31 May 2012, Pages 417-423
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Crucial Role for Membrane Fluidity in Proliferation of Primitive Cells

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.celrep.2012.03.008Get rights and content
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Summary

The cell wall is a defining structural feature of the bacterial subkingdom. However, most bacteria are capable of mutating into a cell-wall-deficient “L-form” state, requiring remarkable physiological and structural adaptations. L-forms proliferate by an unusual membrane deformation and scission process that is independent of the conserved and normally essential FtsZ based division machinery, and which may provide a model for the replication of primitive cells. Candidate gene screening revealed no requirement for the cytoskeletal systems that might actively drive membrane deformation or scission. Instead, we uncovered a crucial role for branched-chain fatty acid (BCFA) synthesis. BCFA-deficient mutants grow and undergo pulsating shape changes, but membrane scission fails, abolishing the separation of progeny cells. The failure in scission is associated with a reduction in membrane fluidity. The results identify a step in L-form proliferation and demonstrate that purely biophysical processes may have been sufficient for proliferation of primitive cells.

Highlights

► The bacterial cytoskeleton is not essential in cell-wall-deficient L-forms ► Membrane fluidity is an important factor for L-form proliferation ► Decreased membrane fluidity blocks the separation of progeny cells

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