Abstract
Dormant bacterial spores can rapidly revive and resume a vegetative life form once nutrients become available (Stragier and Losick, 1996; Setlow, 2003). The earliest revival event, termed germination, holds the key to understanding this rapid conversion from a dormant into an active cell. During germination, the spore undergoes release of dipicolinic acid (DPA), rehydration, cortex hydrolysis, and coat disassembly. This phase is accompanied by transition from a phase-bright spore to a phase-dark cell, as manifested by light microscopy (Setlow, 2003, 2013; Moir, 2006; Figure Figure1A).1A). Germination is traditionally considered to occur without the need for any macromolecule synthesis (Steinberg et al., 1965; Vinter, 1970; Setlow, 2003, 2013; Moir, 2006); however, our recent results challenge this view, as we demonstrated that translation occurs during germination and is required for its execution (Sinai et al., 2015).
Highlights
Specialty section: This article was submitted to Microbial Physiology and Metabolism, a section of the journal Frontiers in Microbiology
Germination is traditionally considered to occur without the need for any macromolecule synthesis (Steinberg et al, 1965; Vinter, 1970; Setlow, 2003, 2013; Moir, 2006); our recent results challenge this view, as we demonstrated that translation occurs during germination and is required for its execution (Sinai et al, 2015)
Utilizing Bacillus subtilis (B. subtilis) as a model organism, we provided several lines of evidence supporting this view: (1) Protein synthesis was directly detected during germination by BONCAT (BioOrthogonal Non-Canonical Amino-acid Tagging) protein tagging technique
Summary
Specialty section: This article was submitted to Microbial Physiology and Metabolism, a section of the journal Frontiers in Microbiology. A commentary on Changes in Bacillus Spore Small Molecules, rRNA, Germination, and Outgrowth after Extended Sublethal Exposure to Various Temperatures: Evidence that Protein Synthesis Is Not Essential for Spore Germination by Korza, G., Setlow, B., Rao, L., Li, Q., and Setlow, P. We have shown by BONCAT, time lapse microscopy with MalS-GFP, and western blot analysis that knockout of rpmE and tig directly attenuates protein synthesis during germination (Sinai et al, 2015: Figures 5–6; Figure S2).
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