Astonishing Complexity of Bacterial Circadian Clocks
Published:15 Aug.2023 Source:John Innes Centre
New research shows just how complex and sophisticated these bacterial circadian clocks are, clearing the way for an exciting new phase of study. This work will provide diverse opportunities, from precision timing of the use of antibiotics, to bioengineering smarter gut and soil microbiomes.
An international collaboration from Ludwig Maximillian University Munich (LMU Munich), The John Innes Centre, The Technical University of Denmark, and Leiden University, made the discovery by probing gene expression as evidence of clock activity in the widespread soil bacterium Bacillus subtilis.
Lead author Dr. Francesca Sartor (LMU Munich) reports: "The circadian clock in this microbe is pervasive: we see it regulating several genes, and a range of different behaviours."
Professor Antony Dodd from the John Innes Centre added, "It is astonishing that a unicellular organism with such a small genome has a circadian clock with some properties that evoke clocks in more complex organisms."