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Prokaryotic Cell Division

1) Binary fission is the process of cell division in prokaryotes where the genomic DNA is replicated and allocated equally into two daughter cells as the parent cell elongates and divides. 2) The protein FtsZ plays a key role in prokaryotic cell division by forming a ring that directs the formation of the septum dividing the parent cell. 3) FtsZ is structurally and functionally similar to the protein tubulin, which makes up microtubules that form the mitotic spindle during eukaryotic cell division, showing their evolutionary relationship.

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47 views3 pages

Prokaryotic Cell Division

1) Binary fission is the process of cell division in prokaryotes where the genomic DNA is replicated and allocated equally into two daughter cells as the parent cell elongates and divides. 2) The protein FtsZ plays a key role in prokaryotic cell division by forming a ring that directs the formation of the septum dividing the parent cell. 3) FtsZ is structurally and functionally similar to the protein tubulin, which makes up microtubules that form the mitotic spindle during eukaryotic cell division, showing their evolutionary relationship.

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Prokaryotic Cell Division

LEARNING OBJECTIVES
By the end of this section, you will be able to:

Describe the process of binary fission in prokaryotes


Explain how FtsZ and tubulin proteins are examples of homology
Binary Fission
Prokaryotes such as bacteria propagate by binary fission. For unicellular
organisms, cell division is the only method to produce new individuals. In both
prokaryotic and eukaryotic cells, the outcome of cell reproduction is a pair of
daughter cells that are genetically identical to the parent cell. In unicellular
organisms, daughter cells are individuals.

To achieve the outcome of identical daughter cells, some steps are essential. The
genomic DNA must be replicated and then allocated into the daughter cells; the
cytoplasmic contents must also be divided to give both new cells the machinery to
sustain life. In bacterial cells, the genome consists of a single, circular DNA
chromosome; therefore, the process of cell division is simplified. Mitosis is
unnecessary because there is no nucleus or multiple chromosomes. This type of
cell division is called binary fission.

Binary Fission
The cell division process of prokaryotes, called binary fission, is a less complicated
and much quicker process than cell division in eukaryotes. Because of the speed of
bacterial cell division, populations of bacteria can grow very rapidly. The single,
circular DNA chromosome of bacteria is not enclosed in a nucleus, but instead
occupies a specific location, the nucleoid, within the cell. As in eukaryotes, the
DNA of the nucleoid is associated with proteins that aid in packaging the molecule
into a compact size. The packing proteins of bacteria are, however, related to some
of the proteins involved in the chromosome compaction of eukaryotes.

The starting point of replication, the origin, is close to the binding site of the
chromosome to the plasma membrane (Figure 1). Replication of the DNA is
bidirectional—moving away from the origin on both strands of the DNA loop
simultaneously. As the new double strands are formed, each origin point moves
away from the cell-wall attachment toward opposite ends of the cell. As the cell
elongates, the growing membrane aids in the transport of the chromosomes. After
the chromosomes have cleared the midpoint of the elongated cell, cytoplasmic
separation begins. A septum is formed between the nucleoids from the periphery
toward the center of the cell. When the new cell walls are in place, the daughter
cells separate.

This illustration shows binary fission in prokaryotes. Replication of the single,


circular chromosome begins at the origin of replication and continues
simultaneously in both directions. As the DNA is replicated, the cell elongates and
FtsZ proteins migrate toward the center of the cell, where they form a ring. The
FtsZ ring directs the formation of a septum that divides the cell in two once DNA
replication is complete.
Figure 1. The binary fission of a bacterium is outlined in five steps. (credit:
modification of work by “Mcstrother”/Wikimedia Commons)

EVOLUTION IN ACTION
Mitotic Spindle Apparatus
The precise timing and formation of the mitotic spindle is critical to the success of
eukaryotic cell division. Prokaryotic cells, on the other hand, do not undergo
mitosis and therefore have no need for a mitotic spindle. However, the FtsZ protein
that plays such a vital role in prokaryotic cytokinesis is structurally and
functionally very similar to tubulin, the building block of the microtubules that
make up the mitotic spindle fibers that are necessary for eukaryotes. The formation
of a ring composed of repeating units of a protein called FtsZ directs the partition
between the nucleoids in prokaryotes. Formation of the FtsZ ring triggers the
accumulation of other proteins that work together to recruit new membrane and
cell-wall materials to the site. FtsZ proteins can form filaments, rings, and other
three-dimensional structures resembling the way tubulin forms microtubules,
centrioles, and various cytoskeleton components. In addition, both FtsZ and tubulin
employ the same energy source, GTP (guanosine triphosphate), to rapidly assemble
and disassemble complex structures.

FtsZ and tubulin are an example of homology, structures derived from the same
evolutionary origins. In this example, FtsZ is presumed to be similar to the
ancestor protein to both the modern FtsZ and tubulin. While both proteins are
found in extant organisms, tubulin function has evolved and diversified
tremendously since the evolution from its FtsZ-like prokaryotic origin. A survey of
cell-division machinery in present-day unicellular eukaryotes reveals crucial
intermediary steps to the complex mitotic machinery of multicellular eukaryotes
(Table 1).

The mitotic spindle fibers of eukaryotes are composed of microtubules.


Microtubules are polymers of the protein tubulin. The FtsZ protein active in
prokaryote cell division is very similar to tubulin in the structures it can form and
its energy source. Single-celled eukaryotes (such as yeast) display possible
intermediary steps between FtsZ activity during binary fission in prokaryotes and
the mitotic spindle in multicellular eukaryotes, during which the nucleus breaks
down and is reformed.

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