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Evidence For Divisome Localization Mechanisms Independent Of The Min System And Slma In Escherichia Coli, Matthew W. Bailey, Paola Bisicchia, Boyd T. Warren, David J. Sherratt, Jaan Mannik

Physics and Astronomy Publications and Other Works

Cell division in Escherichia coli starts with assembly of FtsZ protofilaments into a ring-like structure, the Z-ring. Positioning of the Z-ring at midcell is thought to be coordinated by two regulatory systems, nucleoid occlusion and the Min system. In E. coli, nucleoid occlusion is mediated by the SlmA proteins. Here, we address the question of whether there are additional positioning systems that are capable of localizing the E. coli divisome with respect to the cell center. Using quantitative fluorescence imaging we show that slow growing cells lacking functional Min and SlmA nucleoid occlusion systems continue to divide preferentially at …