Quantitative morphological analysis of <i>Deinococcus radiodurans</i> elucidates complex dose-dependent nucleoid condensation during recovery from ionizing radiation.

ABSTRACT: The extremophile Deinococcus radiodurans maintains a highly organized and condensed nucleoid as its default state, possibly contributing to its high tolerance to ionizing radiation (IR). Previous studies of the D. radiodurans nucleoid were limited by reliance on manual image annotation and qualitative metrics. Here, we introduce a high-throughput approach to quantify the geometric properties of cells and nucleoids using confocal microscopy, digital reconstructions of cells, and computational modeling. We utilize this novel approach to investigate the dynamic process of nucleoid condensation in response to IR stress. Our quantitative analysis reveals that at the population level, exposure to IR induced nucleoid compaction and decreased the size of D. radiodurans cells.

SUBMITTER: Cordova A 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC11323932 | biostudies-literature | 2024 Jul

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature