SpoIIE drives asymmetric cell division in <i>B. subtilis</i> by sequential modulation of the cytokinesis machinery.

ABSTRACT: To form a dormant spore, Bacillus subtilis and related endospore-forming bacteria divide asymmetrically to generate daughter cells of unequal size, the smaller of which becomes the spore. The transmembrane protein SpoIIE repositions the cell division machinery and controls cytokinesis during sporulation, but the molecular basis for the precise placement of the asymmetrical division site to the quarter cell point is unknown. Here, we applied live-cell fluorescence microscopy techniques to reveal that SpoIIE localizes with the treadmilling components of the cell division machinery. We found that SpoIIE opposes the inhibitory activity of the MinCD complex, which prevents assembly of Z-rings near the cell poles. Cells expressing a variant of SpoIIE with its transmembrane region replaced

SUBMITTER: Ryan A 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12259061 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Jun

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature