Loss of growth homeostasis by genetic decoupling of cell division from biomass growth: implication for size control mechanisms

We describe genetic manipulations that decouple cell division from cell size, leading to the loss of growth homeostasis, with cells becoming progressively smaller or progressively larger until arresting. This was achieved by modulating glucose influx independently of external glucose. Division rate followed glucose influx, while volume growth was largely defined by external glucose. Therefore, the coordination of size and division observed in wild-type cells reflects tuning of two parallel processes, which is only refined by an inherent feedback-dependent coupling. We present a class of size control models explaining the observed breakdowns of growth homeostasis.
Source: Molecular Systems Biology - Category: Molecular Biology Authors: Tags: Cell Cycle, Quantitative Biology & Dynamical Systems, Signal Transduction Articles Source Type: research