Dynamic proteome trade-offs regulate bacterial cell size and growth in fluctuating nutrient environments.

ABSTRACT: Bacteria dynamically regulate cell size and growth to thrive in changing environments. While previous studies have characterized bacterial growth physiology at steady-state, a quantitative understanding of bacterial physiology in time-varying environments is lacking. Here we develop a quantitative theory connecting bacterial growth and division rates to proteome allocation in time-varying nutrient environments. In such environments, cell size and growth are regulated by trade-offs between prioritization of biomass accumulation or division, resulting in decoupling of single-cell growth rate from population growth rate. Specifically, bacteria transiently prioritize biomass accumulation over production of division machinery during nutrient upshifts, while prioritizing division over growth dur

SUBMITTER: Kratz JC 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10163005 | biostudies-literature | 2023 May

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature