细菌分裂调控Min系统的功能、机制及应用研究进展

Bacterial Division Regulatory Min System: Functions, Mechanisms and Applications

细菌分裂过程及其调控机制是生物学研究中的根本问题。大多数细菌采用“二分裂”方式分裂,分裂过程主要包括染色体复制和分离、FtsZ组装成Z环、细胞内隔膜形成与子细胞形成等关键步骤。Min系统是Z环组装的主要调控系统之一,由FtsZ抑制蛋白MinC、膜结合的ATP酶MinD和结构拓扑因子MinE组成。早期研究大多聚焦在Min系统的细胞分裂调控功能,然而Min系统还作为细胞内部重要的自组装调控系统参与多种细胞代谢生理过程与细胞表型,具有应用开发潜力。本文首先简要概述Min系统的主要类型、结构特征和摆动模型,随后从细胞分裂、细胞运动性、细菌粘附性与致病性、细胞代谢生理过程等方面总结Min系统的生物学功能,最后介绍Min系统在细胞形态工程、抗菌制剂开发和合成生物学应用等方面的应用潜力。

Bacterial division and its regulatory mechanisms are fundamental biological research areas. Most of the bacteria divide by binary fission, and the division process mainly involves chromosome replication and segregation, assembly of FtsZ into Z-ring, intracellular septum formation and daughter cell formation. Min system is one of the major regulatory systems for Z-ring assembly and consists of MinC (FtsZ inhibitory protein), MinD (membrane-bound ATPase), and MinE (structural topology factor). Most of the early studies focused on the roles of Min system on bacterial division. However, recent findings suggest that Min system is an important intracellular self-assembly regulatory system and is involved in a variety of cellular metabolism, physiological processes and other phenotypes. In this review, we first briefly outline the major types, structural features and oscillatory models of the Min system. We then summarize the Min system-regulated biological functions, including cell division, cell motility, bacterial adhesion and pathogenicity, and physiological processes of cellular metabolism. Finaly, we introduce the potential applications of the Min system in cellular morphology engineering, antimicrobial agent development and synthetic biology.