Asymmetric segregation of protein aggregates is associated with cellular aging and rejuvenation.

ABSTRACT: Aging, defined as a decrease in reproduction rate with age, is a fundamental characteristic of all living organisms down to bacteria. Yet we know little about the causal molecular mechanisms of aging within the in vivo context of a wild-type organism. One of the prominent markers of aging is protein aggregation, associated with cellular degeneracy in many age-related diseases, although its in vivo dynamics and effect are poorly understood. We followed the appearance and inheritance of spontaneous protein aggregation within lineages of Escherichia coli grown under nonstressed conditions using time-lapse microscopy and a fluorescently tagged chaperone (IbpA) involved in aggregate processing. The fluorescent marker is shown to faithfully identify in vivo the localization of aggregated protein

SUBMITTER: Lindner AB 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC2268587 | biostudies-literature | 2008 Feb

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature